Bay Area woman spent Mother's Day at son's bedside as he battles heart condition

A Bay Area woman spent Mother’s Day where no mom wants to be— in the hospital at her son's bedside.

Her son, Lamont Jones III, was a seemingly healthy 15-year-old just weeks ago, but then everything changed, first slowly, then suddenly.

COVID was suspected, but the tests came up negative.

After a recent trip to the emergency room, doctors discovered that the teen has a potentially life-threatening issue.

In mid-April, he started complaining of COVID-like symptoms and was vomiting.

His mother, Trielle Robinson, said she took him to the emergency on April 21 when his condition worsened, which ultimately led to testing that found fluid in the teen's lungs.

"Once they did the chest X-ray they found his heart to be enlarged. And once his heart was enlarged they did a sonogram and come to find out it was only 10-15% pumping," Robinson said.

Jones III was diagnosed with "dilated cardiomyopathy" and admitted to Stanford Children’s Health hospital where he is currently.

He's had multiple surgeries and has two mechanical devices that help his heart pump blood. His family said patients with one device can often leave the hospital but not two.

"There might be a chance that we can’t even go home. It might be that we have to stay here until we are healthy enough to be put on a list for a heart transplant," said Robinson.

Lamont is now sedated and experiencing complications. His condition is the opposite of how he’s been throughout life.

"He was just a typical 15-year-old kid. He's into everything and ants to do everything," said his father, Lamont Jones II.

The couple has three kids. His parents said the teen is a good student, gifted baseball player, and has never experienced severe illness.

They said their son has likely had this condition for years, but was never caught by annual checkups.

Even so, the couple who lives in Suisun City, but has deep ties to Vallejo, has a message for parents everywhere.

"If you see any signs of your child being tired, being sick or throwing up, vomiting longer than a day, take them to the ER right away," Robinson said.

"Just go to the doctor, stop making it an issue to go to the doctor. It’s very important to go, go," said the teen's father.

Jones II sells cars and has a clothing store in Vallejo. He is well known for his Facebook posts on a community group.

Since the couple has had to leave their jobs to care for their son, they set up a GoFundMe page to help with expenses.