Dad Feels Heartbroken After “Happiest Little Girl” Dies Suddenly | He Had Tucked Her Into Bed Just Hours Before

David Hutton, a 38-year-old father went through an unfathomable circumstance last year. He will never forget the very last time he tucked his daughter in her bed after which she passed away. 

“She climbed into bed but wouldn’t settle down,” the 38-year-old, who has no other children, told the Manchester Evening News. “It was just desperation because I knew something wasn’t right.”

Isla was rushed to a nearby hospital but tragically passed away on October 8, 2022. The cause of her death remains uncertain to date, but it's believed that she suffered a cardiac arrest or seizure due to some underlying condition. 

Isla was born in 2015 and was diagnosed with long QT syndrome, or LQTS, a heart-signaling disorder that can cause fast chaotic heartbeats. This means her heart took way longer than normal to recharge between beats and she was at risk of sudden fainting.

Doctors discovered that something was up with her heart a few days after she was born. At around 2 days old she was moved to Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool and fitted with a pacemaker.

She spent more than 365 days in the hospital and was finally discharged a few days after her first birthday. Following her discharge, she was still under the drug mexiletine, however, the dosage required was so high it often caused seizures. 

David left his job as a primary teacher to become Isla's full-time carer. “Life just feels so different,” he continued. 

Isla was just 6, “It feels like yesterday that she would come and climb on my knee, yet it feels like a lifetime ago. I can see the impact she had on other people and it’s been comforting," he said.

"I was by her side in the hospital the whole time. Time seemed to flash by but it was like slow motion. I wouldn’t have wanted her to be suffering. If she came back around, I wanted her to still be the happy little girl she was. She was the happiest little girl you could have ever met," he added.

Isla was the mascot for Thryv Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company developing inhibitors to treat various conditions, including long QT syndrome. They helped the company to secure more than $15 m for drug research in the US. 

David also co-founded Team 1C, an organization that provides a network of support for children with cardiac conditions and their families. Projects are also underway to honor Isla's life including a camp in India and also funding an EPIC center with the charity Love The One which will be a recreational day for the families and a festival in the summer for children and families staying at Alder Hey. 

"While bittersweet, it is a huge comfort to me knowing that Isla’s story has inspired a potential cure for Long QT and is helping in the battle against cancer," David added. "She may go on to save countless lives."

David's upcoming motto is to raise money for the hospital that helped Isla her whole life. So far he has managed to raise around  £4,200 for Great Ormond Street Hospital and Children’s Charity by taking part in JanuRun, click the link to donate. 

References:

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/i-tucked-little-girl-bed-25958867?_ga=2.100917441.1507299888.1673863991-1927497326.1671437326

Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo By Jamie Grill / Tetra Images