"We’re Still Filled with Hope": Alexia Shares Heartwarming Update on Son Frankie’s Recovery Process
There's nothing Alexia Nepola from The Real Housewives of Miami wouldn't do for her youngest son, Frankie, more than a decade after his tragic accident.
After overcoming tragedy, Alexia Nepola’s family is in a “much better place” as they look toward a bright future together.
Alexia gave a heartfelt update on sons Peter Rosello and Frankie Rosello on The Real Housewives of Miami more than a decade after Frankie was left with severe brain damage in a near fatal car crash in 2011.
Although Alexia shared earlier this year that she “will never recover” from Frankie’s tragic accident, the family is embracing every opportunity to help Frankie live a more independent life.
Alexia Nepola's Update on Son Frankie After Accident
In Season 6, Episode 4 of RHOM, Frankie, Alexia and Peter stopped by Miami’s Casa Privee, a high-end medical concierge facility, where Frankie has been receiving on-going oxygen therapy treatments.
It was the 10th treatment session for Frankie, who plans to undergo a total of 24 sessions of the experimental hyperbaric oxygen therapy. According to the Mayo Clinic, hyperbaric oxygen therapy “involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized environment.”
Although he’s only mid-way through the treatment plan, Alexia told Frankie’s doctor, Professor Dr. Bankole Johnson, she’s already seen some positive improvement from the $600 session.
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“I’m seeing a lot of new words. He’s interacting more,” she said. “And I really do believe in my heart that this is going to work and, if anything, I mean it’s only going to help him.”
Alexia admitted that she’d resisted the therapy years earlier because it was still “relatively new” and she was focused on getting her youngest son “healthy medically.”
“But now, he’s so healthy, so we’re excited, like I’m full of hope,” she said.
Alexia has remained by her son’s side since the accident in 2011. Frankie, then just 13 years old, had been riding in the passenger seat of a friend’s car at the time of the crash, according to PEOPLE. Alexia spent months at his bedside at the hospital as the family navigated their new challenges.
"I will never recover from Frankie's accident," Alexia wrote on Instagram in February after RHOM addressed her son’s injury in Season 5. "It's only my wish that he can continue to improve in time, and he can be as 'normal and productive' as his limitations allow. I will never accept the loss of my dreams for him, and I will never give up on him or Peter. Our pain is so deep."
Although oxygen therapy is “experimental,” Alexia is hopeful it will benefit her son.
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“As a mom, I’m always going to try anything and everything that I can to help Frankie,” she said.
Alexia also opened up in the most recent episode about the toll Frankie’s accident had on her oldest son, Peter.
“Frankie, like before the accident, was always like a stronger kid, you know. I felt like Peter always looked at Frankie as his role model, like the big brother, even though there’s a four-and-a-half year difference,” she shared of the siblings’ tight bond.
When Frankie was injured, Peter was left to navigate a new normal.
“Frankie’s accident changed Peter’s life completely and you know, I think Peter’s had a really difficult time coping with it,” she shared through tears. “I think it’s something that you carry inside of you forever. It’s like this pain.”
While there’s no escaping the pain of the tragedy, Alexia and Peter have been touched by Frankie’s loving nature.
“Frankie should spread more love,” Alexia told Peter as they sat in the treatment room together. “He’s always about peace and love and a smile, always has something beautiful to say.”
Peter added he believed the reason for his brother’s positive spirit was because he was “grateful.”
“He knows what happened and he sees all these things,” Peter said. “He can’t express it, but he feels it.”
More than a decade after the accident, Alexia said the family is now focused on the opportunities ahead.
“Peter you know — almost lost his brother so he himself was like suicidal,” she shared “I had to save two kids, but I feel like now he’s come such a long way and as a family we’re moving on and we’re still filled with hope and we’re in a much better place.”
Alexia shares both sons with her first husband, Peter Rosello Sr. Her second husband, Herman Echevarria, passed away in 2016 shortly after she ended the relationship. Today, Alexia is married to Todd Nepola.
