Thank you for visiting Rico's fundraising page.

We are trying to raise funds to pay for life-changing therapies and treatments that will help address the damage to Rico's brain, which occurred during the late stages of pregnancy.

Rico was born full term in August 2023 after a normal pregnancy. One day, I noticed reduced kicking, and remembering the advice from the amazing charity KicksCount to always get checked if you’re worried, I went in. Upon doing so, the hospital confirmed that Rico was suffering from a lack of oxygen and blood flow to the brain. I was completely alone, rushed into theater, put to sleep, and Rico was born via an extremely fast emergency C-section.

To this day, the cause is unknown. Rico was born not breathing and needed six minutes of resuscitation. Following a devastating brain scan, we were told to bring our family in and say goodbye, as the damage was too severe, and Rico was not expected to survive. The life support was turned off. However, Rico soon started breathing, feeding, and moving independently. We brought him home after three weeks, where we were told to "wait and see" what happens with his development. The NHS's approach is to let problems occur and then treat them as they arise. However, brain research has proven that early intervention is crucial in the first months of life, and neuroplasticity (the brain's ability to rewire itself and work around existing damage, creating new neural connections) has the most potential in the first couple of years. But it has to happen early, and one of the most effective ways is through physiotherapy and other alternative therapies.

The NHS has given us basic assessments and therapies, but there is so much more available to help Rico and his brain development. For the first year, we funded both alternative therapies and essential treatments ourselves (physiotherapy, cranial osteopathy, ABM therapy, chiropractor sessions, and ophthalmology and ENT assessments), but the funds are now running out. So, we are planning to raise funds however we can to pay for more physiotherapy and help Rico's brain rewire itself. He isn't yet rolling or crawling but has already come so far and seems to fight through every hurdle presented to him.

Rico has already been diagnosed with epilepsy, global developmental delay, and cortical vision impairment. All we want to do is give him the best chance possible to learn, improve, and reach his full potential. His seizures are under control, his vision and hearing seem to be developing, and he is 100% orally fed and being weaned onto solids slowly. There are so many positives! We hope there will be more.

Thank you so much for reading. Rico is deeply loved at home by Mummy, Daddy, and big brother Rafa, and we appreciate the support we’ve received so far from all our family, friends, and loved ones.

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.