Adam was born on the 21st of November 2011 weighing 6lbs 13oz. He was the perfect baby after a textbook pregnancy and birth.
At 6 weeks old things began to change. Adam started to cry all the time day and night, with only short breaks throughout the day. This continued until he was seven months old. He cried in the car, in the pram and in our arms, he was inconsolable. We tried everything. We took him to the doctor numerous times, we changed his formula, we even tried acupuncture! We began to notice he wasn’t developing normally. He wasn’t kicking his legs or moving his arms as his older brother James had done.
At a regular check up by the public health nurse, she noticed that his head size was a little small. She told us to visit our GP and have him assessed. The GP wasn’t overly concerned but referred us to a paediatrician as his head size was under the average for his age.
On the 1st of May 2012 our lives changed forever. We were told at that appointment Adam’s brain had not developed properly and it had stopped growing. The paediatrician said he most probably had cerebral palsy and would have developmental delay. Adam would need to have an MRI scan which would help to determine the full extent of his brain injury. We left the office completely distraught, in shock and with so many unanswered questions.
In July Adam had his first MRI Scan in Letterkenny General Hospital. After reading the scan the paediatrician told us “it was very bad”. We asked what that meant, would he walk, would he talk etc. He was very vague and said we would need to go to Dublin to see a paediatric neurologist. He told us to “take him home and love him”.
In September 2012 we met with a paediatric neurologist. Adam slept for most of the appointment. After looking at his scan she told us that Adam would be profoundly disabled both physically and mentally. However, Adam woke up and responded positively to our faces and voices which she was very surprised about. She immediately changed her opinion about his mental capacity. She told us that something had happened in the early stages of the pregnancy that affected his brain development. She also explained that the inconsolable crying was a direct result of his neurological problems.
In the months and years that followed, there were numerous appointments in Dublin and Letterkenny with neurologists, therapists and specialists. They determined that Adam had contracted CMV (Cytomegalovirus) during the early stages of pregnancy. This is a very common virus that has little to no effect on a healthy person, but to an unborn baby it can have devastating consequences. As a result, Adam has a life limiting condition. He has microcephaly (small brain), intractable epilepsy, aspiration lung disease and quadriplegic cerebral palsy which means he is unable to walk, crawl, sit, hold objects or even hold his head up. He is peg fed, non-verbal and deaf in one ear. Adam requires round the clock care. In addition to his everyday needs, he has to undergo a lot of therapy.
Despite all of his difficulties he is a very happy boy! He loves playing with other children, especially his big brother James. He enjoys going to playschool. He loves being outside, going for walks and watching the birds!
Any money raised will go towards his therapy, specialised equipment and making the necessary adaptations to Adam’s home. This in turn will make Adam’s life more comfortable. Thank you very much.