Every parent hopes for pretty much one thing when they have a child: that they’re healthy.
Two parents got an unfortunate news almost two years ago when their second daughter came out of the womb with something slightly off.
The newborn baby’s legs seemed smaller than average when her mother, Sara McGlocklin looked at them. However like any new mom, she was just glad to have her precious newborn healthy in every other possible way and figured her little girl would eventually grow out of it.
But fast forward over a year later, both of Mariam’s parents noticed that her leg issues were getting progressively worse. When she was close to the age of two, both parents noticed that Mariam was struggling to walk and even sit down.
To figure out why this problem wasn’t going away, the McGlocklin couple consulted local doctors to find out what was going on. After months of unanswered questions, their youngest daughter was diagnosed with a fatal genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick disease type C, the other common name for it is childhood Alzheimer’s.
According to Sara and Paul, it is hard to realize all of this when looking at their happy-go-lucky, active and friendly daughter. Paul said, “To hear those words and know that something is wrong with her – it’s devastating. It’s something you just don’t want to think about.”
Due the rarity of the illness, there is very little research or information about it. Mariam’s parents immediately went to work on trying to find ways to save their daughter and others like her. After they contacted other families of children with this rare disorder, they quickly realized that their precious daughter’s illness is not a death sentence and that new medical advancements are happening everyday and make it possible for Mariam to have a long life.
According to a message posted by the family, they have also shared that since their daughter was diagnosed, they have gotten information about a clinical trial for her to participate in. Both Paul and Sara are hopeful that this will be the answer to their prayers.
To raise money and awareness, the couple and their other daughter, 4-year-old Emily are working hard to raise money. So far the family has collectively raised roughly $55,000 of their $150,000 goal.
If you would like to donate GoFundMe page click on this link.
(H/T: ABC 7)
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