fierce love | Encouragement for Today

This was a post my daughter in love made on social media. I am sharing it with permission.

I pray it inspires you as much as it has inspired me. Our granddaughter is a treasure that brings joy and happiness to everyone she meets!

September 13, 2019 was a life changing day for our little family.

I’ve spent 18 days processing this. 18 days of being sad, angry, hopeful, bitter, grateful.. sad again.. angry again. I’m normally not one to overshare personal information (besides pictures of my ridiculously cute child) but I feel social media is the best outlet to deliver this to friends and family. I don’t have the heart to talk about it over and over on the phone or in person.

We’ve spent the last few months addressing some health concerns with Norah, mostly developmental delays and some tight reflexes in her feet and ankles. We met with a few Doctors, Specialists, and Physical Therapists which eventually resulted in a referral to a Pediatric Neurologist.

I went into this appointment optimistic. Yes, I had spent the last several weeks with my friend, Dr. Google, but I knew there was nothing seriously wrong with my perfect babygirl.

Cerebral Palsy

Those 2 words with the formal diagnosis hit me like a train. What? How? Why? She’s 13 months old.. I had a perfect pregnancy, she’s only been sick with a cold once in her whole life. She’s social, happy, funny, snuggly, perfect. I think I blacked out from pure shock. After those 2 words were said, Taylor jumped to my side immediately. He was my support and my voice and I don’t think I’ve ever loved him more than in that moment.

We left the appointment with a handful of referrals, next steps, an MRI appointment, etc. The first few days after the diagnosis are a pure blur of emotions.

So why am I sharing this on Facebook? I’ve spent the last 18 days processing how I want our daughter’s future to look.

As much as I want to.. I can’t keep her in a bubble and hide this forever. I am not ashamed of Cerebral Palsy. I don’t want sympathy looks and concerns. I don’t want my friends to be scared to share milestone achievements about their own adorable babies in fear of hurting my feelings. I don’t want this to be the only topic of conversation when we see friends and family. I don’t want to spend hours on my phone texting or talking about this.

I don’t want comments like “oh she will be okay!” This isn’t okay.. but she is strong, she is a fighter, she is the happiest baby in the world, and above all she is fiercely loved.

Of course the milestone achievements are important. Yes I want to see my daughter walk. I am dying to hear her say “mama”.. but her CP diagnosis has made me realize that above all, I want to raise my daughter to be kind and to show compassion, just like our friends, family and community have shown us the last 18 days.

I want her to use this diagnosis as a platform to inspire others. I want her to know that she is strong and can achieve anything she puts her mind to. I want her to know that everyone is fighting some kind of an internal battle and that her beautiful smile and showing kindness can make anyone’s day just a little brighter.

So please don’t feel sorry for us but instead celebrate our sweet girls accomplishments with us. We refuse to let Cerebral Palsy define Norah and to define us as a family. I refuse to let it define me as a mother.

We don’t know exactly what the future will look like.. but what we do know is that this doesn’t define who Norah is and that CP is just a part of her journey and a chapter in her story. I cannot wait to watch her tackle this and show the world just how amazing she is.

And now that I have this very emotional and very dreaded post behind me, onto bigger and better positive updates about Norah’s achievements. I cannot wait to share her story with everyone we love, everyone who loves us, and everyone who loves our perfect daughter.