Alexis’ story of courage, strength and advocacy

By Linda

3rd October started out as the best day of my life, I was about to give birth to my first child. The little girl I had dreamed of my whole life. Apart from being sick, my pregnancy went well, and I just could wait to meet her this girl I was already so in love with. I was so eager to hold her in my arms and protect her from the world.

After many hours in labour, things weren't going to plan, but I was told to push anyway. This was my first birth, and I didn't know a lot about birth, so I trusted the doctors and nurses completely. So much went wrong that night, and when I asked questions, I was told everything was fine. I knew it wasn't. Due to a series of medical errors, Alexis needed urgent care as soon as she was born, and within moments the room filled with a blur of doctors working to keep her safe. She was rushed out the door and placed in an incubator, her body kept cool, before being transferred by ambulance to another hospital for specialist support.

During her first 24 hours, she had two seizures caused by the bleeding on her brain. We are extremely thankful that they are the only two she has ever experienced. After two weeks in hospital, we were able to bring her home. She was just the most loveable, beautiful baby I had ever seen.

Alexis started physio at 12 weeks. At 6 months she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. It was only at 2 years old, during a conversation with her pediatrician, that he casually used the words "when Alexis had her stroke". This was the first time I had heard anyone use that term "stroke". I cried for days, and what happened to her, came flooding back and hit me all over again.

But I pulled myself together, did a lot of research, and focused on Alexis and how I could help her. By the age of 2, Alexis was in the very superior range for cognitive ability, receptive language and speech, and average for both gross and fine motor skills. She was smashing milestones every step of the way. As she has grown, her muscles have become tighter in her leg and arm, but Alexis has never let that stop her from achieving any goal she has put her mind to. She has faced challenges, including physical barriers, being left out and unkindness from other children. Rebuilding self-esteem is hard when it has been knocked down, but the love and support of her family, especially her little brother Tyler, has helped Alexis understand just how loved, capable and supported she is.

She has gone through so much but now 13 years old, Alexis is an advocate for children’s rights, a published author and illustrator, and is featured with her brother in the Children’s Rights Queensland book The Big Book of Rights. She is a state karate champion, a cross country and athletics national medalist, a para-athlete, a public speaker, a singer, a model, and she plays baseball and soccer. She is also kind, brave, funny and determined, with dreams of becoming a marine biologist and a Para Matilda at the World Cup. With her brother Tyler by her side, always supporting and competing with her, they encourage one another to never give up and continue to live by our family saying: Don’t limit your challenges, challenge your limits.

Life will always be filled with physio, OT and hospital appointments, and there will always be dark days and times when she feels she is not good enough, which breaks my heart as her mother. Her resilience has lifted me up and taught me to be a better person. We have spent a lot of time building up her self-worth, and now she is at a place where she can have a cry, then pull herself back up and remember all of the wonderful things she can do, and how her future is absolutely going to be amazing.