Our 3-Year-Old Has Had 30 Surgeries - He's No 'Monster' | BORN DIFFERENT

THREE-YEAR-OLD Raedyn was born with a rare genetic condition known as Pfeiffer syndrome. The condition caused Raedyn's skull bones to fuse together earlier than they should have in the womb, meaning he was born with a visible difference. More alarmingly, at birth, Raedyn's airway was blocked - he was unable to breathe and had to be placed immediately on life support. Mom Natasha recalls how "doctors asked if we wanted to keep him alive... Or he can pass comfortably here in your arms." There was no doubt in the parents' minds: "I just said, 'No, we're going to fight for him and we want him here with us'." Raedyn had a trach placed so that he could continue to receive ventilation support and Natasha and Rufus (Raedyn's dad) began working with doctors to ensure their son had the best prognosis possible. He has now had 30 surgeries, including 14 head reconstructions - and has another surgery on the horizon: a third attempt at bringing his eyebrow bone forward to protect his eyes. Seeing their son go through so many surgeries has taken a toll on Natasha in particular, but the amount of time in hospital has also meant that, three years later, Raedyn is "developmentally about a one-year-old." To help him progress and gain independence Raedyn is on various therapy programmes totalling 6 hours per week, which are paying off - at one point, doctors didn't expect him to be able to walk, but he took to his feet during his second Christmas and has not looked back since. Having overcome so much adversity, Natasha began documenting Raedyn's journey on TikTok to share the positive progress he was making - but she was shocked by some of the response. She and Rufus have been accused of being "selfish" for choosing life for Raedyn and comments have appeared calling him "ugly, creepy, creature, monster." It is therefore no surprise that Raedyn's 13-year-old brother Julian is so protective of him, standing up for Raedyn when people stare in public and also helping care for him at home. And with such a loving family around him, Natasha decided to defy the haters online and continue posting Raedyn's updates to tackle their ignorance head-on: "Raedyn deserves to share his story and he deserves to be seen just like anybody else. I just want people to realise that it's ok to look different, be different, sound different."

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