Thursday, July 17, 2008

THE GIFT OF MOBILITY






This little girl came to our last medical clinic in Chambrun. Her mother really didnt know what was wrong with her, just that she had been like this since birth. She has sever Cerebral Palsy. Her muscles are very contracted and stiff. She cannot walk, sit up, feed herself or speak. She was extremely thin. Her mother said she vomits most of the time and cries all night. They would lay her on the ground to sleep. Im sure it was extremely painful for her to lay flat with her contracted muscles and very hard to breath.
We had a wheel chair that some of the guys were able to modify for her. We did a lot of teaching with the mother, gave her some Pedialyte and Ensure. In the U.S. she would have had a feeding tube to feed her through. A child like this in America would be difficult to take care of. I can't imagine doing it with no medicine, medical care or food. This family only lives five minutes from our school, I will check on her in October when I am there again. Hopefully with her being able to be in a sitting postion she might be able to digest better and breath more comfortably. That is the best we can do for them. We prayed for her and sent them home. Very heartbreaking to watch for sure.
Steph

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