Always advocate for your child

Just hours after my daughter Alexis was born, we found out she’d had a stroke in utero.

We were due to be heading home with our brand-new baby girl when I noticed her arm shaking slightly. If I was at home I wouldn’t have thought anything of it, it’s only that I asked the nurse for her opinion. My baby girl was then whisked away.

Within an hour we were told she had a massive stroke and she would never walk, talk or live an independent life, we were absolutely shattered.

At first we had a terrible experience trying to get Lexi the care she needed. I spent weeks begging hospitals to see us. Eventually the Royal Children’s Hospital took us back on and Lexi started seeing specialists.

When Lexi was six months old she started to crawl, then at one she started walking. Neither us or her team of specialists could believe the progress she was making. She is classed as having extremely mild Cerebral Palsy and there are a few small issues that we’re working on.

She’s now seven years old, in grade one and loving school. Her favourite subject is maths.

It was a huge milestone for our entire family the day Lexi learned how to ride her bike. She had been practising every day for six months, she was so determined to lose her training wheels.

My message to other parents is to never give up! Reach out to as many families who have been through similar experiences and always advocate for your child.