Couple say to see their girl walk was like winning Lotto
Not only was she born nine weeks early, but tiny Cara also suffered a very serious bleed on her brain which was discoveredshortly after she wasdelivered in Hollis Street Hospital in an emergencyC section.
“The bleed on her brain was a grade four bleed and it left her with cerebral palsy affecting her left arm and both her legs. But our little girl is a fighter and we are very proud of her,” said mother Laura.
“I had had high blood pressure and within an hour of going for a routine check-up with the doctor I was rushed to theatre and she was delivered. She just wasn’t happy inside is the best way to describe it,” she said.
Little Cara weighed just 1.14kg (about 2.5lb) and “she was tiny even for her gestation age”.
Along with husband Pauric, 34, she spent many months worrying about Cara and whether she would survive being born at 31 weeks.
When she was just three months old, Cara began to attend the Central Remedial Clinic, and while she did sit up unsupported, she did not crawl. Then came the news they did not want to hear.
“We were told she would probably never walk. We couldn’t believe it. She was nearly two at that stage,” said Laura.
Pauric and Laura refused to give up hope and searched for options. They discovered there is a procedure carried out on the spine called SDR, or selective dorsal rhizotomy, which reduces the muscles displaying spasticity.
“This allowed her legs to move freely and now we are doing exercises and physiotherapy to strengthen her co-ordination and build up her muscles.”
The couple had to bring Cara to St Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri, in America, for the procedure at a cost of €60,000.
“We were amazed when we began fundraising and actually raised €75,000, although we had a target of €60,000. The support we got from family and friends was incredible.”
She was operated on last April and returned home to Balbriggan five weeks later.
“They told us in the hospital that Cara will be able to walk on her own, but it will take about two years.”
The couple recently celebrated Cara taking her first steps on her own in her walker.
“She walked around the living room and I had tears in my eyes thinking how long we had waited for this.
“Now she says ‘I want to walk,’ and we are so proud of her.
To us it is like winning the Lotto to see her move on her own. We have a long road ahead of us, but we are ready for it.”
