NFL Star Tevin Coleman & Wife Akilah Share Their Daughter, 6, Was Placed On A Ventilator Amid Sickle Cell Journey: ‘Most Resilient Girl I Know’

NFL Star Tevin Coleman & Wife Akilah Share Their Daughter, 6, Was Placed On A Ventilator Amid Sickle Cell Journey: ‘Most Resilient Girl I Know’

NFL star Tevin Coleman and his wife Akilah Murib Coleman are opening up about their daughter’s life with sickle cell.

On Tuesday (April 9), the couple shared via a joint Instagram post that their 6-year-old daughter Nazaneen had been on a ventilator.

The pair, who are also parents to Nazaneen’s twin brother Nezerah, posted touching footage of Nazaneen recovering in the hospital. Akilah Murib Coleman wrote in the caption,

“A short story about the most resilient girl I know. Nazaneen spent some time on a BiPAP ventilator machine which essentially means she couldn’t breathe on her own & needed the machine to expand her lungs & breathe for her. She also received her first blood transfusion.”

 

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A post shared by Akilah Murib Coleman (@ak.gobang)

Akilah Murib Coleman went on to salute her husband’s strength and continued,

“I admire & envy the self control @teco_raww26 has because when Nazaneen was placed on the ventilator I fell to my knees hyperventilating. I was swinging in & out of consciousness, it’s a feeling unexplainable watching your child literally fight to breathe. Tevin managed to calm my spirit while managing his own. I’m so sorry for that because it doesn’t leave space for him to go through the motions.”

Expressing her real and raw emotions, the mom of two, who appeared in season 15 of Real Housewives of Atlanta, shared how difficult it is to see her child suffer, and explained why she is so open about Nazaneen’s journey.

“It’s really hard for any parent to be this kind of vulnerable & transparent but we feel it’s important because we share so many of our highs & our successions that it would be disingenuous & misleading not to share this. I’ve realized one of the hardest things for me to do as a parent, wife & woman is to surrender. I cannot always control the outcome & that is such a hard pill to swallow.”

 

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A post shared by Akilah Murib Coleman (@ak.gobang)

She shared that the experience is “humbling” yet “inspiring” as money and celebrity status cannot “alter” the outcome.

Nazaneen’s classmates also sent her audio, telling her they missed her and “hope you feel better.”

Akilah said of the heartfelt moment, which was included in the video,

“She listened to that message more times than I can count. Even when she couldn’t speak & all she could do was cry that audio was on repeat for two weeks in the hospital. I think it kept her spirits up & determined to fight. It serves as a reminder of the power of friendship no matter the age! ??
#sicklecell#sicklecellawareness“

Akilah and Tevin Coleman have been open about their daughter’s journey with sickle cell and are advocates for raising awareness about the condition. According to the National Institutes of Health, it is “an inherited blood disorder that affects hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen through the body.”

Continued prayers for Nazaneen’s healing!