Patti Murin Reveals 10-Week-Old Baby Girl Had an Open-Heart Surgery

open heart surgery little hero Patti Murin

By Hanna S. , Parent Herald Nov 04, 06:46 am

Broadway star who played Anna in "Frozen," Patti Murin, shared a photo of her baby girl dressed as Captain Marvel and revealing how her little hero has survived open-heart surgery at 10 weeks old.

She wrote on her Instagram post that her daughter, Cecily, recently underwent open-heart surgery. She revealed that her baby was born with a rather large hole that the operation aims to repair. And while a lot of babies are born with it, many of them close up on their own.

"Preparing for it mentally is 'gut-wrenching at best.'"

She said that they found out about it when she was 22 weeks pregnant. While they had known beforehand that it was inevitable, mentally preparing about it is "gut-wrenching at best." This especially true when she had to see her tiny new daughter go through such an incredibly serious and invasive procedure.

She continued on saying that helping her little girl recover "day by day, breath by breath" has a humbling and inspiring experience for her. She couldn't help but feel proud of her 4-month-old daughter who she said is already "more badass" than she could ever be.

Murin and her husband, Colin Donnell, 38, welcomed Cecily in early July this year. She previously told PEOPLE that she is head over heels in love with her newborn. Parenthood, she said, is already the most insane and beautiful thing in existence. After five years of marriage, the couple first broke the news in February that they are going to parents to a baby girl.

Doing "Frozen" made her want to have a baby girl

Three years ago, Murin learned that she was pregnant while she was auditioning for "Frozen" but had a miscarriage at eight weeks. She said that Frozen reminded her about the importance of family and that it helped her get ready for motherhood.

She added that doing Frozen and building a relationship with fellow actors, especially the young actresses who played Anna and Elsa, made her want to have a little girl of her own. She obviously wants a happy and healthy baby, she said, but the years she spent with Frozen made her want to have a baby girl "real bad."

However, in April, she revealed that she had symptoms of the coronavirus including a cough that made her feel that her head is splitting open from the inside out. Luckily, the baby was okay. She assured her followers that the virus can't cross the placenta making her uterus literally the "safest place" for her baby girl.

Further in her Instagram update, she thanked the medical staff at Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital who she said made things slightly less difficult for her. She particularly mentioned Cecily's surgeon, anesthesiologists, cardiology team, nurses, nurse practitioners, support staff, security guards, and physician's assistants.

Cecily is doing well now. Murin said that her daughter is the most heroic person she knows. She adds that she can't wait to tell her stories about how brave she was.