Cleveland Browns star Hakeem Adeniji shared an emotional video announcing the stillbirth of his son.
The 26-year-old NFL player revealed the heartbreaking news in a post shared to Instagram on November 7. At the beginning of the clip, he mentioned the series of health issues he and his wife, Kayla M. Adeniji, have recently endured. talking about the heartbreaking loss.
“So this is just a quick update for, you know, people close to us and if we haven’t responded,” he began after taking a deep breath. “It’s been a tough few months for us.”
Adeniji explained that he suffered an injury during the NFL preseason, which Sports Illustrated reported in August, and suffered another health scare a few weeks later. He revealed that he almost collapsed and was taken to hospital, where he learned he had two blood clots in his lungs.
“Luckily I was okay. And everything was good,” he said. “We found out that I have to be on blood thinners for at least six months.”
He said he and his wife then returned home and began preparing to welcome their son. On November 1, the couple had a date night and his wife said she “wasn’t feeling” their son. They drove to the hospital and had an ultrasound done.
“They put it on her stomach and we heard nothing. It was the worst moment of my life,” he said as tears began to form in his eyes. “Anyone who knows me knows how much I wanted to be a father.”
He said the pain he felt at that moment was indescribable.
“It was six days before we had our little boy. We have to hold him. We got to spend some moments with him,” he said.
Adeniji added that the couple’s family and friends were supportive. He also asked for prayers for him and his wife.
“This is going to be very tough. We will never forget him. We love him. He will live on in our hearts forever. He gave us so much hope. It has been a long process with IVF,” said the athlete.
He said the love he and his wife have for each other will help them get through this unthinkable tragedy.
“It’s been a journey, but I know he’s watching over us and wants us to keep going. So that’s what we’re going to do and it’s going to be hard. There have been some difficult moments. But there have been a lot of moments to be thankful for and we’re just going to try to do what we can,” he said before ending the video.
On November 9, he returned to Instagram to give an update on how he’s feeling. The post included a photo of Adeniji and his wife cradling their son in the hospital.
“It’s been just over a week since we lost our boy,” he wrote in an accompanying note. ‘There has been anger, sadness and emptiness. The fact that he is gone is now a fact and nothing can change that. I will never see him grow up, and he will never be able to read his diary that I wrote for him. I miss him and I will miss him every day for the rest of my life.”
Going forward, he said he didn’t want the people in his life to treat him differently because of the hardships.
“I still love children and still want to be happy for all my friends in their good moments,” he said.
Adeniji continued, “I still want to be a father more than anything in this world and he gave me that even if it was short lived. When and if I ever get that chance again, I will never take a day for granted. I love my boy and he will live through us.”
In the caption, he simply wrote, “Better days lie ahead.”
His wife also posted a touching tribute to their son. She uploaded a series of photos showing her husband holding her hand tightly at the hospital. There was a photo of their son’s baby feet and another photo of the football player holding their son.
“We have lost our son. We had to say goodbye to the most perfect, beautiful boy I have ever seen. We will never be the same and we will never forget him,” she said in the caption.
She said their son had curly hair, soft cheeks, big hands and his father’s nose.
“He will always be my son and I will always be his mother. He has put us through so much this year and stayed so strong for us for so long. I will always remember holding him and smelling him. He was just perfect,” she wrote.
She also wrote a message to their son, adding, “Oh my sweet boy, mommy and daddy will always smile when we think of you, I promise. Please look out for us, my angel.”
At the end of the post, she revealed their son’s name: “Semiu Zade Adeniji 11/02/2024 8lbs 4 oz and 21 inches.”
In a second post on November 7, she uploaded a video of the moment a nurse placed their son in her arms for the first time. She said their son was beautiful and looked peaceful.
She said that in honor of November 7, her due date, they started a new family tradition and celebrated their son by watching his father’s favorite movie, “The Lion King.”
“Until I can hold your hand again, boy, I love you,” she said.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
