"We found out that Hudson’s brain hadn’t formed properly during an ultrasound at around 27 weeks into the pregnancy. We learned this is called Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum, which basically means the central part of his brain connecting the two halves is underdeveloped. We were shocked, as anyone would be, but were determined to give him the best life he could have.
At around 12 weeks of age, we discovered that Hudson was legally blind. He has a condition called Optic Nerve Hypoplasia with Nystagmus. This is a damaged optic nerve, which means his brain finds it difficult to interpret what he sees.
By 6 months it was apparent he was physically delayed. Hudson started Physiotherapy and Hydrotherapy before his 1st birthday, to strengthen his muscles. At this point in time he was found to have muscle tone issues. It took over a year for Hudson to be able to sit up on his own, and he was 20 months old before he started crawling.
Hudson’s development progressed slowly but surely, until January 2010, when he had his first seizure. He had to be put on a ventilator to stop the seizure, and spent 3 days in hospital recovering. Hudson continues to have partial complex seizures, and is now considered to have epilepsy.
Hudson was recently diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. This means that the part of his brain that controls movement and muscles is damaged. He will require ongoing extensive physiotherapy to manage his CP.
We have seen firsthand children that have used a Kid Walker to begin to learn how to walk - the joy on their face when they realise what they’ve achieved. We would love to see that same look of joy on Hudson’s face.
We thank you for your help to achieve this for Hudson."
Robert and Tina Gillespie
