Christina Hall’s Mother’s Day turned from celebratory to scary when her 6-year-old son Brayden — shared with ex-husband Tarek El Moussa — underwent surgery for an emergency appendectomy and removal of Meckel’s diverticulum on Sunday.
The former couple and Flip or Flop co-stars shared the news on Instagram, writing that the surgery went well and Brayden is recovering.
“Scary 12 hours for us parents + step parents,” Hall, who also shares daughter Taylor, 11, with El Moussa and son Hudson, 2, with ex-husband Ant Anstead, posted alongside a photo of Brayden in a hospital bed.
“After being admitted to the ER, Brayden had to have an emergency appendectomy as well as removal of Meckel’s diverticulum early this morning. Nothing like seeing your child in excruciating pain ..luckily the surgery went well and he is recovering and in good spirits. The entire staff at Mission Hospital was amazing and we are all grateful it was caught early. Blessed to have 3 healthy + happy kids, caring family and friends and a husband who stands by my side. Happy Mother’s Day everyone,” she concluded, mentioning Joshua Hall, whom she married last month.
Christina Hall shared the news about her son’s appendectomy on Instagram.
El Moussa and his wife, Selling Sunset star Heather Rae Young, also shared the news and said the whole family pulled together to care for Brayden.
“He’s such a strong boy and of course he told me he’s very excited to eat real food tomorrow, he’s obsessed with food just like his daddy️,” El Moussa wrote. “Very scary day, but we all banned together as a family to get through it. Thank you to the amazing Doctors and nurses who took such incredible care of our boy.”
“Scariest day of our life but we are so thankful it was caught early,” Young added. “Times like these we ban together as a family. It’s been a very emotional day but he is doing well and recovering.”
Tarek El Moussa shared his son’s story, as well.
Apparently, Brayden was “extremely sick” before his appendectomy, which is a common emergency surgery to remove the appendix when it is infected, according to Johns Hopkins. The condition is called appendicitis, and symptoms include pain in the abdomen, upset stomach, vomiting, loss of appetite, fever and chills, constipation, diarrhea and swollen belly.
Brayden was also diagnosed with Meckel’s diverticulum, an abnormality of the small intestine that causes it to bulge outward. According to WebMD, it is prevalent in 2 to 4% of the general population, but is the most common birth defect of the digestive tract. Symptoms may not appear until adulthood and usually include rectal bleeding and upset stomach.
Christina Hall and her husband Josh with the kids.
Tarek and Heather with the kids.
Hall and El Moussa finalized their divorce in 2018 after nearly 10 years of marriage. The HGTV stars are now happily remarried and co-parent their children as best they can.
Of their blended family, Young told In Touch, “We keep it separate, and we really focus on our house and raising the kids how we want to at our house and healthy habits here… But obviously, we communicate for the children. [Christina] and I mainly do. And you know, obviously, we’re raising kids, and they’re half the time over there, half the time with us. So, we do communicate for the children.”
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