Triplets

Recently the Heartwell Foundation had a referral for two children, brother and sister, who were born as triplets.  Both of the children have been diagnosed as having Cerebral Palsy, spastic diplegia.  They are 12 years old.

Being the mother of 11 year old twins, I had immediate feelings of empathy for this family.  That is, I understand the work load associated with a multiple birth and the chaos of the early years.  The stress of feeding, bathing, lack of sleep etc.  It does not necessarily get easier as the years roll by either, because by then the children need constant taxiing to their after school sports, activities and friends, and so on.

Then I made the phone call to discuss the referral with the mother of the children.

My feeling of empathy was quickly flooded by my inability to even imagine how this amazing family survive.  The third triplet is on Life Support requiring 24 hours, 7 days a week of oxygen.  She requires constant suctioning to clear her airways and is fed intravenously.  One parent needs to be with her at all times, and there are frequent trips to the RCH.  The two children with Cerebral Palsy have very different health needs.  They want to run and be active.  They want to improve their balance and coordination and reduce their ankle and knee pain.  They want social interaction and fun!  

I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for these parents to feel that they meet all these varying health needs of their precious children.

It certainly made me stop and think before complaining about taxiing my tribe to where they need to go!!