Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page...

On the 10th of August 2010, I was blessed with a beautiful baby daughter—my little Freya! She was born by forceps delivery at 42 weeks and weighed a healthy 8lb 13oz. I fell head over heels in love with her immediately!

As the weeks and months went by, I fell more and more in love with her, but I did become concerned that she was not reaching milestones that were expected. Not only that, but when she was 10 months old, I expressed my concerns about the positioning of her feet. I had noticed that her feet would tilt inwards when she was weight-bearing. She was referred to see a community paediatrician who told me not to be concerned and that she would grow out of it. "Maybe we're just worrying about nothing," I thought. Months passed, and this continued and only seemed to get worse, and there was still no sign of Freya learning to walk. Again, I was told not to be concerned and to leave it until she was 18 months old before looking into it any further.

Freya was over 18 months old by this point, and still nobody would take me seriously. My little girl couldn't walk and had noticeably deformed feet. I was told time after time by several medical professionals that there was nothing wrong with her. I would cry leaving appointments because I’d been made to feel like I was making a fuss about nothing, even though my mother's intuition told me something was wrong. Freya had tests, X-rays, and MRI scans, and everything came back normal. It was so frustrating not having answers. She was seen by a physiotherapist on a regular basis, but other than that, we were left to our own devices.

In April 2014, Freya was seen at Alder Hey Children's Hospital by a consultant neurologist who confirmed that I had been given incorrect information about Freya's MRI results. There WAS something to be seen on that scan! Finally, after fighting for years to get answers, at the age of 3 years and 8 months, my beautiful girl was diagnosed with Spastic Diplegia Cerebral palsy. I was absolutely heartbroken. It was not the diagnosis I had been expecting, but at the same time, I was so relieved that I FINALLY had answers! Cerebral palsy is a form of brain damage caused during pregnancy, birth, or soon after birth.

Freya is an extremely happy, intelligent, strong-willed, well-loved, and chatty little girl who has a zest for life and gives everything her best. We're actually quite lucky that she has no other health complications as a result of her CP, other than the fact she has to wear glasses. She has no learning difficulties, attends a mainstream school, and is thriving! She LOVES to learn and read! She does everything with a cheery disposition and a smile on her face... CP doesn’t stop her giving her best to everything she does!

It's a real struggle for her to walk unaided, and she has very poor balance and coordination. This means she falls over a lot and gets tired very quickly! She uses a walking frame and also has a wheelchair for longer distances. She also wears AFOs on her legs, which help to keep her stable. I have tried my hardest to ensure she already has a fantastic quality of life, but as her mum, I feel she deserves more...

A few months after Freya's diagnosis, I came across an article about a doctor in St. Louis who specialises in surgery specifically for the type of CP Freya has, and naturally, it got me thinking. I did A LOT of research, spoke to other families who had been to St. Louis, and I was eager to know if Freya could possibly be suitable for this life-changing surgery. I completed the application, sent off video evidence, had X-rays done, and sent copies of her MRI so the doctor could assess her. Within 8 days, I received an email with a decision... it was a YES!

She has been offered the chance to go to St. Louis, Missouri, USA, to have Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy surgery, which could potentially be life-changing for her. I have also been advised that she may need to have a second procedure to lengthen the muscles in her calves while we are there. The SDR surgery is performed at the base of the spine and severs the nerves that cause the spasticity, so this would be permanently reduced. It would improve her balance, posture, confidence, and quality of life and would also reduce the amount of pain she suffers daily. Not only that, but the doctor predicts she will be able to WALK COMPLETELY INDEPENDENTLY in all environments.

To see her do all the things most of us take for granted would be the best gift we could ever get... to see her walk, run, skip, jump in puddles, take her to a shoe shop and buy "normal" shoes, ride a bike, walk into school hand in hand with her friends rather than holding on to a walking frame, and maybe one day throw those AFOs in the bin! She deserves this chance so much, but unfortunately, I can't get there without help. This is a big ask, I know, but I have to try! If I could trade places with her, I would in a heartbeat, but I can't. The best I can do is to try and make it better for her.

Money raised will go towards surgery and medical costs, 3 weeks of intensive therapy in St. Louis following her surgery, accommodation, flights, living costs for the 5 weeks we'll spend in the US, new AFOs if needed, physio on her return home, and any equipment she will need to aid her recovery and continue her therapy at home. I would be beyond grateful for any donations to help me change my little girl's life ❤️

7.5% of all donations to Tree of Hope in relation to this appeal will be allocated to the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope to cover our core operating costs.

If we raise insufficient funds, or surplus funds, then the funds will be used, if appropriate, to fund support for our child’s needs in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objects. If in those circumstances we are unable to use all or part of the funds for the benefit of our child in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objectives, then any funds that cannot be used will be transferred to be used for the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope.