A MUM who was told her unborn twins were not going to survive to the end of her pregnancy more than six years ago is looking forward to a trip to Disney World in Florida with her ‘little fighter’.
William Ryder, six, has a number of complex medical conditions that have left him unable to talk. But that doesn’t mean he can’t communicate, and his mum Michelle said he is the world’s biggest Mickey Mouse fan.
Together with husband Paul, the family has been selected as one of 25 to be taken to Disney World in Florida by the charity Caudwell Children accompanied by a team of doctors, nurses and about 40 volunteers who will be on hand to support them.
It’s something Michelle never expected to be doing.
William was born more than three months early and weighed just one pound one ounce.
“William was a twin, but sadly his twin died in pregnancy,” said Michelle, 42, of Foxmires Grove, Goldthorpe.
“We were told at about 13 weeks that one heartbeat had stopped, we were taken to the bereavement suite and told the worst - we were losing them both.
“I miscarried at 16 weeks and thought that was it, we must be losing them both. But somehow William survived.”
There were other complications with both William and Michelle, including severe pre-eclampsia, meaning she remained in hospital for most of the rest of her pregnancy until the 27th week when matters came to a head.
“They basically told me ‘we’ve got six hours to get him out or you’ll both die’. I just went numb when they told me that. It was so early and he was so small and we knew there were complications.
“As things progressed I was told he wouldn’t make it. I was just heartbroken.
“But he came out with this little squeak, and they said ‘we’re going to give him a chance’. And he just kept on fighting.”
The family has had numerous scares along the way, including William suffering a severe stroke last year. He has had to endure many hospital visits in his short life so far. He suffers epilepsy, has lost the vision in his right eye, and can only walk short distances in familiar surroundings. He is tube-fed and has to take numerous quantities of medication.
But despite all of that he remains a happy and fun-loving child.
“He always has a smile on his face,” said Michelle. “He absolutely loves Mickey Mouse. Because of his needs we would never have been able to even think about travelling to Florida. Just the flight alone would have been too much.
“But with the support of a full medical team with families in similar situations, we can. We’re just so grateful to have been selected, it’s wonderful.”
The family is now asking friends, family and well-wishers to help support the charity, because while the holiday is booked for December, without extra funding to cover the expected £12,000 bill per family, it might not be able to go ahead.
“Because of the associated costs of taking very poorly children overseas the charity has to pay, on average, £12,000 per family,” said Michelle.
“The insurance alone would be unaffordable for us now.
“But with the current economic climate there’s always the risk that they won’t be able to raise enough money by the time the holiday comes around in December 2018.
“Therefore, all the families on the holiday have decided to appeal to their local community to ensure that we get on that plane to Florida, in December.”
To support the appeal, see the JustGiving page here.
