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10-year-old TikTok star Bella Brave in medically induced coma

By NICK GARCIA Published Jul 11, 2024 11:05 am

TikTok star Bella Thomson, also known as Bella Brave, is intubated in the intensive care unit and is in a medically induced coma as of July 10, her mother said.

"The best of the best were telling us it looked really bad. But I kept a lifted stare, intensely listening until I heard what hope there was left, that we could hang on to," Kyla Thomson wrote in her Instagram post on July 11, sharing photos of a name bracelet indicating "Isabella," the hospital bed which showed Bella's arm and her stuffed toys, and letters from supporters.

"She’s stable and that in itself is the improvement for now," Thomson added.

In a post on July 8, her mother shared that the 10-year-old has a viral infection in her lungs and may have developed Bronchiolitis Obliterans or "popcorn lung," which the American Lung Association describes as an “irreversible and chronic condition” whose symptoms include shortness of breath, dry cough, and sometimes wheezing.

In another post the following day, Thomson noted that Bella mesmerized doctors by "sitting up, chatty," but she eventually struggled. Doctors don't know if Bella will "survive this."

"I know she will. I know she has an army praying for her," she said.

In her July 11 post, Thomson said Bella is under a large dose of steroids, as it's the "one option" left to help her lungs work again. She's on her second day of those and the third day, Thomson said, "will give us more information on how soon we could see her lung function improve."

Thomson said she and her husband Lyle talk to Bella, as she plays music for her and they read her all the cards, letters, and messages from supporters.

"We are praying and believing we have stopped the fibrosis attack on her lungs, in enough time, that still allows her lungs to heal & function again," she said. "This wait is beyond unbearable."

Bella rose to fame when her family started chronicling her medical journey on TikTok, where she has over seven million followers.