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We are a non profit organization, dedicated to fundraising for every cause, every condition and every circumstance, so no one ever has to suffer in silence or feel alone.
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Christian’s parents share his story with us.
Christian is a Real Life Survivor of Spina Bifida.
Christian is from Loveland and Wellington CO, he is 16 years old and has had 26 total surgeries so far. He has had 20 surgeries on his shunt, 1 on his legs, 4 concerning his bladder and bowel, and the initial spinal surgery.
He faces daily challenges with school and his entire life, he uses a wheelchair for long distances or when he is just hurting too badly. He experiences regular back and leg pain as well as headaches just from fatigue and having hydrocephalus. He also has ADHD with developmental delays. He cannot process events like most people and can’t organize or remember things as well as most 16 year old’s, but has the biggest heart and personality you could ever ask for. He loves everyone and tries his best everyday. He can’t run well and doesn’t have very good balance, the bigger he gets the harder it is for some things. He has also started having daily nerve pain and tingling as well as troubles feeling hot or cold. We do not know if he will ever drive, go to college, or even be able to live on his own because just remembering to do daily care activities is a struggle for him.
He will probably be on anxiety and ADHD meds the rest of his life. We always have to watch for shunt malfunctions, those could happen anytime. His doctors are sure that he will have to have another spinal surgery at some point, for tethered cord because as he grows his spinal cord doesn’t really stretch well and it could cause severe issues and surgery could be necessary to prevent full disability in his lower extremities. We don’t know when this could happen, maybe it won’t have to, we are always on watch. Yet above all his problems he is a happy healthy guy. He will help anyone, loves all animals, is a social butterfly and puts his very best into everything he does. He is trying everyday to be just like everyone else his age. We remind ourselves it could have been worse, if the defect was even 1 or two inches higher, he probably wouldn’t feel his legs and be strapped to a chair. So many kids are a lot worse off. We always know in the back of our mind that there is a good chance he will be fully wheelchair bound, if he gets too big his legs won’t carry him, because his leg muscles don’t really get stronger. He still wears full AFO’s from toe to knee to give his legs strength and stability, he’s checked yearly for kidney stones or failure and bladder stones, which all would mean more surgeries.
He is an active 10th grader at Loveland High School and even participates in the JROTC program, doing as much as he can to help out where he can. He is a great brother to all 3 of his brothers. He participates in youth group and is actually now a youth leader helping the elementary kids in their youth group and bible study. He doesn’t give up on anything and he will push his body to its limits on a daily basis. His life expectancy is normal, he just may have more physical delays than his peers and of course mental delays, but he’s usually smiling. Occasionally he does have his days where he wishes he was like everyone else, but not very often and he gets through it pretty quickly and moves on to bigger and better things.
Even though he has daily struggles, life will be grand for Christian. We have always tried to teach and treat him like any other kid, with the same rules as his peers and siblings with some modifications for his disabilities.
Chirstian North
NEVER GIVE UP!!
