Olympic Gold Medalist Warns Parents About RSV Risk

When Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson East's second baby struggled to breathe in the middle of the night, she learned a terrifying truth: no baby is too healthy to get seriously sick from RSV.

The gold medalist watched her first child breeze through a mild RSV infection with just a runny nose and cough. But when her son caught the virus at one year old, everything changed fast.

"It took a very quick turn," Johnson East recalls. "The runny nose, the fever, the cough, turned into an ER visit in the middle of the night. He couldn't breathe, and it got really scary."

Her son developed a serious lung infection that required hospitalization. The experience shocked Johnson East, who has built her life around meeting challenges head-on, from Olympic balance beams to raising three children.

Now she's using her platform to help other parents understand what she wishes she'd known sooner. Respiratory Syncytial Virus is the leading cause of hospitalization in babies under one, yet its effects are completely unpredictable.

"Some babies can handle it well, and some do get that serious RSV lung infection," explains Dr. Mona Amin, a board-certified pediatrician partnering with Johnson East on the awareness campaign. "No baby is too healthy or too strong to get RSV and have those serious lung infections."

Why This Inspires

Johnson East's willingness to share her scary hospital experience is helping remove the stigma and confusion around RSV. Many parents assume only premature or immunocompromised babies face serious risk, but that's not true.

Her advocacy is particularly timely as new preventive options become available. Doctors now recommend a preventive antibody called nirsevimab for babies under one during their first RSV season and certain children up to 24 months.

When Johnson East became pregnant with her third child, she asked her pediatrician about every possible way to protect him. Those conversations revealed options she didn't know existed during her earlier pregnancies.

The former gymnast encourages parents, especially first-time moms, to ask their pediatricians specific questions about RSV prevention. What seemed like a standard childhood illness became a medical emergency for her family, and she wants others to be prepared with knowledge and options.

Johnson East's message is clear: trust your instincts, stay informed, and don't assume your baby won't be affected just because they seem strong and healthy.