Cameron's Smile
Donation protected
Cameron was born 10th December 2012 with a rare genetic condition called Norrie Disease. This causes males to be blind & may also lead to hearing loss. Despite this, he is still one of the happiest children we know!
Cameron is in desperate need of a medical bed to ensure he is safe when sleeping. We aim to raise at least the £6000 he needs and are also looking for donations or funds to supply bouncy castle/face painting/cake.
Cameron is in desperate need of a medical bed to ensure he is safe when sleeping. We aim to raise at least the £6000 he needs and are also looking for donations or funds to supply bouncy castle/face painting/cake.
A message from Carla-
Cameron was born at 39 weeks 6 days weighing a healthy 8lbs 4, by induction and he was ready to come home hours after his birth.
For the first 6 weeks he had his days and nights around the wrong way and would barely open his eyes whilst awake.
One day the light shone through the window directly into Camerons eyes, showing what appeared to be yellow dots in his pupils. At 6 weeks he was still unable to focus on objects and didnt seem to look at us.
We spent everyday for two weeks taking him to the doctors, talking to health visitors and professionals expressing our concerns. It will come they said, your just being over protective parents, that is what we were made to feel like.
By 8 weeks Cameron was puking up his feeds and losing weight. We took him straight to a&e and also expressed our concerns about his eyes.
I remember the doctor shining a light into his pupils. 'He appears to have cataracts'. We were sent home with a referral to Bristol eye hospital.
Cataracts? I had never even heard of that before, so of course out came doctor google and i was reassured an operation could correct it.
I was still heart broken that my baby was going through this and i would break down in tears every 5 minutes.
Just 2 days had passed but Camerons vomitting wasnt giving in and he was finally admitted for gastroenteritis. Whilst being treated for this, we pressed on with our fears about his vision and were seen straight away by an eye consultant.
We stepped outside of the room whilst a nurse put a clamp on my babies eyes for the consultant to be able to have a look.
I remember being stood amongst a busy waiting room with people going about there day to day lives, whilst my world came to a stand still.
Straight away he was booked in for an MRI scan, where my tiny boy had to go through his first of many GAs.
It appears to be Norrie disease, the consultant said. There is too much scar tissue and his retinas are completely detached. Not even light perception.
I remember walking down those hospital stairs ready to collapse telling my mum over the phone that my son was blind. Who would of guessed a month later she would walk out of my life for good.
I spent every waking minute researching his condition, trying to find out what the future held.
Mental retardation the internet said. Progressive hearing loss, developmental delays, autism, seizures. The list went on.
Why did this happen to me? What did my son ever do to deserve this disease? My heart was broken and i didnt know how to repair it.
I held my precious baby in my arms, Ive loved him with an unexplainable kind of love and watched him grow and defy the odds.
He reshaped my heart and stitched it back together again piece by piece. I dont know why this happened to me, but ive realised it could happen to anyone. Its just a part of life. Its not a curse or a burden. It really was a blessing in disguise.
To watch someone smile from pure emotion is the best feeling in the world. He doesnt know what a smile looks like, its not something he learnt to copy. Its a feeling from deep down inside, spreading across your face, becoming infectious!
I wouldnt wish some of the hardships he has had to face over the years on any body. But i have learnt he doesnt need vision to be successful or happy. And i wish i knew back then what i know now.
That he is going to be OK. Our life isnt over. Its only just begun. And what a beautiful journey its taken us on.
Cameron was born at 39 weeks 6 days weighing a healthy 8lbs 4, by induction and he was ready to come home hours after his birth.
For the first 6 weeks he had his days and nights around the wrong way and would barely open his eyes whilst awake.
One day the light shone through the window directly into Camerons eyes, showing what appeared to be yellow dots in his pupils. At 6 weeks he was still unable to focus on objects and didnt seem to look at us.
We spent everyday for two weeks taking him to the doctors, talking to health visitors and professionals expressing our concerns. It will come they said, your just being over protective parents, that is what we were made to feel like.
By 8 weeks Cameron was puking up his feeds and losing weight. We took him straight to a&e and also expressed our concerns about his eyes.
I remember the doctor shining a light into his pupils. 'He appears to have cataracts'. We were sent home with a referral to Bristol eye hospital.
Cataracts? I had never even heard of that before, so of course out came doctor google and i was reassured an operation could correct it.
I was still heart broken that my baby was going through this and i would break down in tears every 5 minutes.
Just 2 days had passed but Camerons vomitting wasnt giving in and he was finally admitted for gastroenteritis. Whilst being treated for this, we pressed on with our fears about his vision and were seen straight away by an eye consultant.
We stepped outside of the room whilst a nurse put a clamp on my babies eyes for the consultant to be able to have a look.
I remember being stood amongst a busy waiting room with people going about there day to day lives, whilst my world came to a stand still.
Straight away he was booked in for an MRI scan, where my tiny boy had to go through his first of many GAs.
It appears to be Norrie disease, the consultant said. There is too much scar tissue and his retinas are completely detached. Not even light perception.
I remember walking down those hospital stairs ready to collapse telling my mum over the phone that my son was blind. Who would of guessed a month later she would walk out of my life for good.
I spent every waking minute researching his condition, trying to find out what the future held.
Mental retardation the internet said. Progressive hearing loss, developmental delays, autism, seizures. The list went on.
Why did this happen to me? What did my son ever do to deserve this disease? My heart was broken and i didnt know how to repair it.
I held my precious baby in my arms, Ive loved him with an unexplainable kind of love and watched him grow and defy the odds.
He reshaped my heart and stitched it back together again piece by piece. I dont know why this happened to me, but ive realised it could happen to anyone. Its just a part of life. Its not a curse or a burden. It really was a blessing in disguise.
To watch someone smile from pure emotion is the best feeling in the world. He doesnt know what a smile looks like, its not something he learnt to copy. Its a feeling from deep down inside, spreading across your face, becoming infectious!
I wouldnt wish some of the hardships he has had to face over the years on any body. But i have learnt he doesnt need vision to be successful or happy. And i wish i knew back then what i know now.
That he is going to be OK. Our life isnt over. Its only just begun. And what a beautiful journey its taken us on.
Organizer
Miona Ducky Martić
Organizer
