UNSTOPPABLE
DOCS DOUBTED HE’D EVER WALK BUT AFTER BEING BORN WEIGHING JUST A POUND, RORY IS.. Toddler stuns mum and dad by taking first steps
A TODDLER has taken his first steps after docs warned his parents he may never walk.
Rory Ballantine was born weighing just over 1lb in the summer of 2020 and was so small his mum bought him clothes for teddies from the Build-a-Bear workshop.
He was born by emergency section when mum Lauren, 23, was 25 weeks pregnant after she had signs of potentially fatal pre-eclampsia.
Doctors told Lauren and partner, RAF engineer Ryan, also 23, that it was unlikely their baby son would survive after he suffered two brain bleeds and a bleed on his lungs in his first days.
As a result of the grade four brain bleed, doctors warned the couple that Rory would likely never walk as he could have been left with cerebral palsy.
Lauren said: “The part of the brain that was affected is the part of the brain that controls you and tells you how to stand and walk, so there was a high chance that Rory would be affected by that.”
However, on New Year’s Day, the 18-month-old defied the odds and took his first steps.
Lauren, of Newmilns in Ayrshire, said: “It was such a lovely start to the New Year.
“Myself and his dad were sitting across from each other on the floor trying to encourage him to start taking his first steps with a biscuit and he just started from there.”
And despite the doctors’ predictions, Rory has continued to defy the odds. Lauren said: “This boy has always done things differently from day one. He has fought against all odds, proving doctors wrong.
“He is hitting all his milestones and is so clever. I’m 100 per cent sure he’s been here
He’s hitting all his milestones and is so clever LAUREN BALLANTINE PROUD MUMMY
before. He is tiny but he’s smashing it.”
Rory has regular checkups with his paediatrician, physio and health and development team, who are keeping a close eye on the tot.
But Lauren says she is looking forward to showing his physio the video of Rory on his feet later this week. She said: “He goes to physio to see if he will be able to walk, or if there will be any issues. They don’t know that he has taken his first steps yet.
“His next appointment is Friday so this will hopefully tell us so much about his future and if he is going to struggle with things.
“Now it is looking like he will be able to walk of his own accord. There may still be other issues but we we are keeping everything crossed for now.”