"Friday, May 2nd started off like any other day with my sweet 2-month-old son. He was smiling, playing, eating well—just being his normal, happy self. That evening, we did our usual bedtime routine: pajamas on, Owlet Dream Sock secured, swaddled snugly, and a bottle before bed. He didn’t finish all of his bottle, which was a little unusual, but nothing that alarmed us. He drifted off to sleep peacefully, and everything seemed fine.

Then, around 1:00 a.m., I was jolted awake by a sound I’d never heard before—the red notification. My heart sank. I scrambled for my phone to check the notification: his pulse rate was 210 beats per minute and climbing. When I picked him up, I could feel the heat radiating off his tiny body. I removed his swaddle and pajamas, took his temperature, and saw 102.6° F staring back at me.

We called the emergency number for his pediatrician, and they advised us to give Tylenol. After we did, he settled back to sleep. But not even two hours later, the red notification went off again—his pulse rate was high once more. That’s when my husband and I decided it was time to go to the emergency room.

At the local ER, they examined him and ran tests. Everything came back negative. We were told it was likely a virus and that it would have to run its course. We were discharged with instructions to keep giving Tylenol. Saturday was manageable. He wasn’t quite himself, but the fever seemed to be coming down. Still, something didn’t feel right.

That night, around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, the red notification rang out again—only this time his pulse rate was 238 bpm. He had developed a bright red, full-body rash and his fever had returned despite the Tylenol. I had never seen anything like it. My husband called 911, and within minutes, paramedics were at our door.

We were taken to another ER outside of our county. There, the tests were repeated—but again, no clear answers. Our baby was in visible pain, crying constantly, not eating, burning up with fever, and covered in a rash. Eventually, the ER doctor decided to admit him to the pediatric unit. We were grateful, but scared. We had no idea what lay ahead.

Over the next two days, more blood draws, more tests, more waiting. Everything kept coming back negative. We were helpless, watching our tiny 12-pound baby suffer as his fever spiked to 105° F. Finally, we got a consult with the infectious disease team.

In the meantime, I had shared an update with family and friends on Facebook. That post was shared again and again, and several people reached out suggesting it might be Kawasaki Disease—something we had never even heard of. But after doing our own research, we were stunned. Our son had every single symptom.

We brought this up to his care team, but initially, they said it was unlikely for a baby so young. Thankfully, the infectious disease team didn’t agree. On day five of our hospital stay, they made the decision to treat him for Kawasaki Disease with IVIG (Intravenous Immunoglobulin).

And then, something amazing happened.

Within 12 hours, our baby began to improve. He opened his eyes and stayed awake longer. He gave us small, tired smiles. The rash faded. His fever broke. It felt like we were finally getting him back.

By day seven, we were discharged and able to take our baby home. I was overwhelmed with emotion—grateful, terrified, relieved. Coming home was scary after everything we had just experienced. But knowing we had our Dream Sock brought us some comfort and a renewed sense of security.

If it weren’t for that first notification, we would’ve never suspected something was seriously wrong. We would have missed the critical treatment window for Kawasaki Disease, and the outcome could’ve been devastating.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Owlet.

Thank you for giving us that first warning.

Thank you for watching over our baby when we couldn’t.

Thank you for giving us peace of mind in the most terrifying moment of our lives.

With endless gratitude,

A forever thankful mama" - Madison N.

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*As a reminder, Dream Sock® is intended to track your baby's pulse rate and oxygen level and keep parents informed, but it is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease or other condition including, but not limited to, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and/or Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).