Little Women: LA is back for Season 8. The premiere starts with good news — Christy lost more than 35 lbs. (a third of her weight!) and things are better with Todd. Jasmine got a little mommy makeover and is working on her dream home with her husband. But this season, Terra and Joe are going through a really difficult time. Their daughter, Penny, who’s now 4, was born with hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain. The excess fluid puts pressure on the brain and can cause brain damage. According to the Hydrocephalus Association, it affects more than 1 million Americans. Terrsa says, “This isn’t something she (Penny) got because she was little but it’s more likely in a little person.”
There is no cure for hydrocephalus, but it can be treated. The most common treatment is a shunt, a flexible medical tube placed in the brain to divert the flow of CSF to another region of the body where it can be absorbed. Penny’s magnetic shunt drains the fluid from her brain to her stomach cavity. Sometimes, as in Penny’s case, shunts can malfunction. “That was hands down the scariest,” says Terra in tears. Penny needed another surgery, immediately. “Hydrocephalus has changed our life and sadly not for the better.” Little Women: LA airs Thursdays at 10 pm on Lifetime, right after Little Women: Atlanta. [Stream any Lifetime show anytime through the Lifetime Live On Demand TV app here. Download is FREE.]
