An 11-day-old baby was rushed to hospital after suddenly struggling to breathe following an illness passed on by an adult visitor.

“If I had waited another 24 hours to take him to the hospital, he might not have made it.”

Mom Ashley Conklin had recently welcomed her second son, Oliver. The delivery went smoothly, and baby Oliver appeared perfectly healthy.

Nine days after Oliver was born, Ashley noticed his nose had become congested. Two days later, his condition had worsened significantly.

“I watched Oliver breathing and noticed the skin near his collarbone was pulling inward. His tummy was doing the same. His breathing became short and very fast,” Ashley recalled.

She immediately called their pediatrician and also sent a video of Oliver breathing to a nurse friend. Both urged her to take him to the hospital as quickly as possible.

As soon as they arrived, Oliver underwent a series of medical tests.

Ashley remembered: “I had heard of newborns being hospitalized, but honestly, I thought I was just being an overly worried new mom.

“When the doctors and nurses walked into the room, I expected them to say, ‘It’s just a cold. He’ll be okay.’

Instead, they told me that if I had waited another 24 hours before bringing him in, he might not have survived.”

Oliver was sent for a chest ultrasound and tested for strep and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) — a virus that often causes cold-like symptoms in adults but can become very serious for newborns.

Doctors also attempted three lumbar punctures to check for meningitis, but Oliver was simply too tiny for the procedure to be completed successfully.

“It was heartbreaking. During the lumbar puncture, no one was allowed in the room because of the infection risk. I had to wait outside while the doctors tried to help him.

“I still cry thinking about how alone he must have felt.”

After several anxious hours, Ashley’s family learned Oliver had viral pneumonia, bronchiolitis, and RSV, all of which can place enormous stress on a newborn’s body.

“Our pediatric specialist warned us that RSV symptoms could become even more severe over the next 36 hours.

“Some babies don’t recover during that stage, and Oliver was only 11 days old,” Ashley said.

Thankfully, Oliver responded well to treatment, although he still remained in the hospital for five days.

Doctors later determined that Oliver most likely caught the illness from an adult visitor who had what seemed like an ordinary cold.

At the time Oliver was born, the family lived in an area experiencing a severe flu season, and the hospital had strict visitor policies. Children under 14 were not allowed to visit unless they were completely well.

Ashley later shared a video of Oliver struggling to breathe during the most difficult stage of his illness on Facebook to remind others how serious common viruses can be for newborns.

“Oliver became sick after someone with what seemed like a common cold visited our home.

“I never imagined such an ordinary illness could have such a huge impact on a newborn.

“My first child was born during the summer, so I wasn’t familiar with winter viruses.

“I want all my friends to understand that visiting someone’s home while you’re unwell isn’t just risky—it can have very serious consequences.

“It could happen to their own children too.”

Ashley also urged anyone visiting a newborn to be especially careful.

“Please stay away from babies if you’re feeling unwell. Even a mild cough can put a newborn at risk.

“RSV can also become life-threatening for older adults, newborns, and people with weakened immune systems.”