Freddie Freeman‘s 3-year-old son, Maximus, who is battling Guillain-Barré syndrome, has returned home from the hospital and is on the road to recovery, the Los Angeles Dodgers star and his wife, Chelsea, announced.
“Last Friday, Max rapidly declined and went into full body paralysis,” Freeman and his wife wrote in a shared statement on social media. “We are very fortunate to have gotten him to the hospital in time so they could reinforce his lungs. Freddie was in Houston at the time and rushed to the first flight back home. After many tests, Max is battling a severe case of Guillain-Barré syndrome. A rare neurological condition that is especially rare in children.
“These have been the hardest and scariest days of our lives. Maximus is such a special boy and he has been fighting SO hard.”
Guillain-Barré syndrome is a disease where the body’s immune system attacks the nerves, causing weakness, numbness and paralysis, according to the Mayo Clinic. The rare disease can be spotted by tingling in the limbs before turning into paralysis. The cause of the disease isn’t known and there isn’t a known cure. However, there are numerous treatment options for the disease and most people who’ve been diagnosed with the disease completely recover, though more serious versions of the illness can be fatal.
Maximus had been dealing with transient synovitis, temporary inflation of the hip joint, and a viral infection when the family attended the MLB All-Star Game in July, Chelsea Freeman shared on social media last week.
After several stressful days in the hospital, the Freemans announced that Max was able to return home and is making progress in his recovery.
Chelsea Freeman wrote in an Instagram post, “After 8 long days in the Pediatric ICU we are officially HOME! Max still has a long road ahead of him to regain his strength and relearn how to walk. But we are so thankful to have our family back together. Thank you God for this miracle. Also, thank you to our incredible team of doctors and angel nurses for taking such good care of our boy. And to our village for helping so much with Charlie and Brandon.”
Freeman was placed on the family emergency list Saturday and has been out of the Dodgers’ lineup since then. It isn’t clear when he’ll make his return.
Freeman is in the midst of another standout season, earning his eighth All-Star nod. He’s hitting .288 with a .888 OPS to go with 16 homers and 67 RBIs. Los Angeles has lost four of its last five games, causing its lead in the NL West to shrink to 4.5 games, as Cavan Biggio and Kiké Hernández have filled in at first base for Freeman.
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