CytomegalovirusAn unidentified infection in Kim Crook's pregnancy brought about her son Ryan's disability.
I had a pretty rough pregnancy, feeling tired 24/7 and with sickness throughout. I just thought I was one of the unlucky people who have a bad pregnancy. I even left my job as an auxiliary nurse at the hospital at six months, as the doctor signed me off! I was induced a week early, as my waters had broken but I had not had any contractions. The birth itself was very good - I survived on only gas and air. However, when Ryan was born, alarm bells starting ringing when everyone realised his head circumference was only 30cm. After months of blood and urine tests and head scans, Ryan was diagnosed with an infection called cytomegalovirus (CMV).They said I must have caught this while I was pregnant and passed it on to Ryan in the womb. They couldn't tell how Ryan would develop but they would monitor him closely. Every milestone makes us proudAt eight months, Ryan was still not sitting unaided or even grasping a toy. After more tests, he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a result of the infection I had passed on to him. Now Ryan is two and he's still not sitting unaided, crawling, talking etc. He is, however, rolling onto his tummy, making sounds and finger-feeding himself with certain foods like cake. I still, however, have to spoon-feed him his meals. He has weekly sessions to help his physical development, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, music therapy, hydrotherapy, speech and language therapy, music therapy and portage. Despite all this, or perhaps because of all of this, every milestone he reaches makes us so proud - he has just learnt how to wave hello and goodbye! Only time will tellI had to give up work to look after Ryan and take him to his appointments. He goes to a special needs nursery where, at the moment, I stay with him from 10am to 3pm. He receives a lot of his therapy there. In addition, Ryan sees his consultant every six months and has regular hearing and eye tests. After Christmas, he will be going to a normal toddler group and, in August 2005, he will go to playschool, with one-on-one tuition. Hopefully he will go to a mainstream school later, as he's a very switched-on boy! Only time will tell. We are starting to adaptRyan doesn't yet understand his condition and regularly gets frustrated when he can't do things. As his mother, I find this tough to watch, especially when he tries so hard! It's difficult not knowing how Ryan will turn out. I've suffered with depression which I'm just getting over. I think it's so important to talk to other parents whose children have similar conditions, as it's difficult seeing 'normal' children overtake Ryan so easily. However, this mentality will not change Ryan's condition and I feel Ryan is so special that we will all get through this together. Life has a way of sorting itself out and, though it has taken time, we are starting to adapt!
|
