MUM’S JOY AS CHARITY FIND SOLUTION FOR
LITTLE Arran Breslin was trapped in a silent world for five years but after getting a specialist bed, he’s finally spoken his first words – his own name and then “Santa”.
Mum Sarah Bannister, 28, was reduced to tears when she heard him speak for the first time.
Arran, five, has autism and was not safe in either a cot or a bed so slept strapped into a car seat and then a buggy as he got bigger.
His mum and dad, John Breslin, 48, had bought him three ordinary beds but he destroyed each and tried to remove them from his room.
The couple, from Drumchapel in Glasgow, had not had a full night’s sleep since he was born as Arran was awake every night from midnight until 5am.
Sarah always had to be with Arran as he would try to hurt both himself and her.
Now, a disabled children’s charity have turned his life around by providing a specialist Safe Space Bed.
It helps Arran feel secure and he now sleeps for 11-and-a-half hours, without waking during the night.
His behaviour has improved. He no longer has “meltdowns” through the day, is doing well BY VIVIENNE AITKEN Health Editor at school and, to his parents’ delight, has finally started to speak.
Hearing Arran say his first words was a very emotional moment for Sarah.
She said: “He was at school and said his own name. Fortunately, they captured it on video so I was able to see it. When he said ‘Santa’ the other day, I was crying my eyes out.
“I’ve been waiting almost six years for him to say, ‘Mummy’. I hope that will come soon but for the moment I’m just happy to hear him say anything.”
The charity who provided Arran’s bed, Newlife, said he is one of thousands of children who are being denied the specialist equipment they so desperately need.
But for Arran, at least, the future is looking far rosier.
Sarah said: “He was so anxious in his room. As a baby, he didn’t even like his Moses basket. He has a fear of falling so didn’t feel safe in a cot or a bed.
“At first, he slept in a car seat inside his pram then, when he got bigger, in his buggy. It