What to Know
When Madison Mitchell gave birth to her daughter Violet in 2025, she had no idea just how much her life was going to change. Of course as a first time mom, she knew that life would never be the same. But then, she was thrown for a loop when she found out her baby girl had an incredibly rare medical condition. Violet was born with aniridia, a rare eye condition, as well as congenital glaucoma. I can’t even imagine what it must have felt like to have a brand new baby and then be told that she may never be able to see and interact with the world the way most kids do. But the beautiful baby girl is thriving, and going viral.
Violet’s mom shared all the details of her baby girl’s condition on social media.
Mitchell has decided to use TikTok as a teaching tool for people who don’t know about Violet’s condition. In one post, she shared a series of pictures of the baby (who is absolutely adorable), using them to explain what her daughter is dealing with.
“Violet was born with a rare gene mutation that causes aniridia. Her condition is so rare, occurring in less than one in a million people,” Mitchell wrote.
“Here we were with our brand new baby, trying to figure out parenthood for the first time while also navigating a rare diagnosis that we’ve never even heard of. The first month of her life we were living out of hotel rooms and the Ronald McDonald house. She underwent an operation at two weeks old and the rest of the month was filled with so many different appointments, and testing. I hope that by sharing Violet’s story it helps other mamas who are going through something similar not feel so alone. Even if it’s just one.”
@madison_mitchell02 It’s taken us 6 months to build up the courage and share part of Violets story with the world. Her dad and I went back and forth for months, scared of how mean the internet can be. It’s been extremely heartwarming and humbling to say the least. Having complete strangers embracing our daughter and wanting to educate themselves is more than we ever expected. We don’t feel so isolated anymore. It’s been so incredibly freeing and uplifting to share this journey that we’re on with you all. To know that Violet has a community of people who think she is just as beautiful and unique as we do, is more than we could have ever asked or hoped for. I am trying so hard to respond to all of your comments and questions. Stick around there’s plenty more to come 💜 #aniridia #babygirl #medicalmom #motherdaughter #daughter ♬ sonido original – Rocío Alvarez Creaciones Digit
The comment section proved that she’s not alone.
One mom commented to share that she was also raising a little one with the same condition as Violet. “He’s definitely taught us a lot over the past 15 months. So lucky to love someone so special!” she said.
“My stepmom has this! She’s lived a fulfilling life! It’s interesting how she described how sight is for her too!” another commenter shared.
Another commenter shared that her husband has the condition. “Yes he had troubles growing up but he made it through all of them. He currently has a great job with the state and is doing phenomenal in life! We recently got married and life with him is the absolute best,” she said.
So, what exactly is aniridia?
According to the Cleveland Clinic, aniridia is the absence of an iris in your eye. It is something that is diagnosed at birth. “Some babies are missing their entire irises. Others only have part of an iris in each eye,” the description states.
Both eyes will be affected because it’s a bilateral condition.
As Mitchell explained, it’s a genetic disorder. “It happens when a genetic change affects the PAX6 gene. This gene helps form your baby’s eyes and parts of their brain, spinal cord and pancreas,” the Cleveland Clinic explained.
It’s more common in kids whose parents also have the condition. However, kids can end up with it even if their parents don’t.
For now, Mitchell’s family is taking it one day at a time and are just loving life with Violet.
“We did Non-Invasive Prenatal Test (NIPT) testing around 10 weeks gestation and were told that she was a perfectly healthy baby girl,” Mitchell explained to Newsweek. “All of her ultrasounds were perfect. It wasn’t until delivery that we could see something was seriously wrong.”
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the genetic change that causes the condition happens between the 12th and 14th week of pregnancy. Mitchell said it’s something that has to be specifically tested for, which is why they didn’t know sooner.
There are a lot of unknowns about how Violet’s vision will be in the future. But Mitchell and her partner are ready to rise to the occasion for their little girl.
“We still don’t know what her full vision outlook will be as she is so young,” she said. “We’ve had to learn to take things day by day.”
