Greeting From George

Hello,

My name is George Eden-Taylor. I was born on the 16th January 2006. This was twelve weeks before my due date, which was the 9th of April. This is a very brief look at my journey so far.

When I was born I weighed 2lbs. 7oz, which is only 1.1kg! I took my first breaths myself and started to cry, but then I got tired, so the doctors had to help me. Unfortunately things didn't go to plan so I lost a bit of oxygen to my brain.

Now I have Athetoid Cerebral Palsy, which affects my motor skills and co-ordination, meaning I find it difficult to do all the things that I want to. Despite this I have a normal I.Q. and a fantastic personality. I find life so funny and laugh lots, but, because my co-ordination is so poor, I can't swallow. Mummy and Daddy help me out though with a special machine that helps provide some suction.

I have my dinners through a tube that goes straight into my tummy. My mummy does all my physio on my arms, legs and hips etc. She also gives me chest physio so I don't get any nasty infections. I sometimes find it hard to get enough oxygen in so I have an oxygen supply when I go to sleep, which means I don't have to worry about it.

I really enjoy my toys and love bashing and looking at myself in the mirror cause I'm a handsome little boy.

My Daddy and his friends are taking part in lots of different events to help raise some money for me. This will help make sure my parents can afford all the things I will need.

I need special toys to help me with my sensory skills and In the future I will needs things to help me sit up in the bath, shoes to help me stand and there are also places I can go to help me with my development and moving my legs and arms. These can be very expensive and are not always provided for me.

So that's me. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Lots of love,

George Eden-Taylor.

What is Athetoid Cerebral Palsy?

The mind is keen but the body is not! Unlike Spastic CP, the Athetoid CP is marked by a movement disorder of muscles, which are too loose, giving the child no vertical stability. His whole body is affected.

The Athetoid child is probably more intelligent than even an average, normal child, leave alone children with other forms of CP. But, he has difficulty scratching his nose, or holding a toothbrush or a pen. He really needs to concentrate hard on muscle coordination to make them obey his command.

It's extremely difficult for him to be upright, to sit or to walk. In treating patients with Athetoid CP, the focus is on helping the child to regain his centre of gravity.

The Basal Ganglia in the midbrain are specialized structures, which help maintain posture and automatic movements like the swing of the arms while walking. In Athetoid CP (also called Dyskinetic CP), it's these Basal Ganglia, which are damaged causing fluctuations in the muscle tone throughout the body. The muscle tone is a mix of high and low i.e. it is sometimes too tight and sometimes too loose and weak.

This makes it very frustrating for both the child and his parents, because his intelligence wants him to do some simple tasks at least, but the body refuses.

Athetoid CP gets aggravated when the stress levels are high, but almost disappears when the child is asleep.

The parents need a great deal of patience and determination to cope with their child's stress when he is unable to touch, feel and learn like any other child. They need to keep up his sagging interest, and encourage him along his slow progress. Such children respond well to stress reducing activities, and to cooler climates as their bodies are forever warmed up because of the constant involuntary movement of their body.