Félix was born in February 2016 with a rare congenital disorder known as VACTERL association, which included serious oesophageal and cardiac conditions. Few hours after birth, Félix was transferred from our local hospital to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in central London for life saving surgeries.

Félix was born with Tracheo-Oesophageal Fistula (TOF for short) and Oesophageal Atresia (OA) which means his oesophagus (foodpipe) and trachea (windpipe) were not properly connected and therefore food could not reach the stomach. As a result, Félix had a surgical intervention to "reconnect" his foodpipe at day 1 under the specialist teams of GOSH.

Two weeks later, Félix underwent open-heart surgery with another specialist team, to correct a cardiac issue (called a 'coarctation of the aorta'). As a result Félix stayed in intensive neo-natal care for many weeks at GOSH. 

We are very fortunate that Félix recovered incredibly well post-surgeries, and that of today he is showing almost no sign of discomfort (although he has some difficulties with swallowing & eating which requires a special textured diet), he is now living a great baby/toddler life, having an incredible time at nursery and at home with his sister, Olivia.

Great Ormond Street Hospital is a state of the art facility who provides exceptional care for sick children not just from the UK but also from around the world.

We have witnessed that GOSH is really a fantastic specialist hospital designed around children and their family needs. It provides not only amazing medical care and research for rare diseases but also a warm and friendly environment for patients and carers during difficult times.

The difference they made to Félix and our family, and to many more families every day, is life-saving. We are immensely grateful and respectful of their work and we hope to continue raising awareness about children's hospitals.

In March 2018, I will be taking on the challenge of running the London Landmarks Half Marathon for Félix and for GOSH. Please give what you can. Your support will make a massive difference to us and really help me to make it to that finish line! Thank you so much for your support!