The Birth 

Hazel Slattery was born on 5th August 2021. My waters broke naturally at 37 weeks. When my waters broke there was meconium in the waters. I went to the hospital straight away. Upon assessment they could see that Hazel was not doing too well. Her heart rate was dropping. Luckily she came quickly and naturally. She was whisked away quickly to NICU for breathing support before I could hold her. I remember being surprisingly calm at the time. 

She had aspirated meconium and therefore required breathing support and antibiotics. She ended up being in NICU for 3 1/2 weeks. This was a really difficult time for us. My eldest daughter Violet was 2.5 yrs old at the time and having to go back and forth to the hospital with lots of unknowns was really difficult. I struggled with the fact I couldn’t breastfeed her and hold her like I did my first. There are times where I still grieve those first moments today. Looking back, the nurses were so lovely and everyone loved Hazel. She had a little kitten cry and hilarious high pitched sneeze which used to make everyone laugh. The kitten cry all makes sense now.  During the time in NICU her oxygen levels were dipping regularly. No one could work out why, therefore she came home on oxygen and a feeding tube. I remember getting home from the hospital and seeing the tanks being delivered to our house. It was so confronting and I found it really hard to accept at the time.  The specialists later found that she had laryngomalacia – a floppy airway. This meant she required thickened fluids. 

Surgery & illness in the early days 

She was on home oxygen full time until a sleep study confirmed obstructive sleep apnea (3 months old). This meant she could come off the oxygen during the day, but still needed it for all sleeps. The ENT found she had enlarged tonsils and adenoids and suggested we remove them as well as do a supraglottoplasty to support the larynx. This was a major surgery at 7 months old. It was a really tough time seeing her go under and the recovery was horrible. In saying that, she benefited so much. At 10 months old we said goodbye to the oxygen tanks for good. Her breathing instantly improved, she started being able to eat and tolerate food better. She started to put on weight and her little personality started to come out. 

The first 10 months she was in hospital at least once a month every month for a respiratory virus. RSV, bronchitis, rhinovirus, etc etc. She would catch everything and end up in hospital for 3-5 days due to her low immunity and weaker lungs. Once again, the surgery helped so much with this.

Despite all of this, Hazel was always a gorgeous, social little baby. Always smiling and giggling at her big sister. She seemed pretty easy going and was so resilient despite all she was going through.  

Diagnosis and Therapy 

At 4 months old Hazel went in to the pediatrician office for a check up. The pediatrician made comments like she seems floppier than most babies this age. She isn’t making eye contact or smiling much. I didn’t agree with this initially as it wasn’t very obvious, but it did raise my awareness. By 6 months it was obvious she was delayed. She was nowhere near sitting, she was not cooing or babbling at all. She could, however, hold her head up and roll both ways which felt promising for me at the time. She was always good at making eye contact and giving out social smiles. At her 6 month check, the paedatrician suggested we do a blood test during her upcoming surgery to check for any rare genetic conditions that could give us some answers for her delay. I reluctantly agreed, secretly hoping she was just slower to meet milestones due to her challenging start with health issues; however, looking back, deep down I knew there was something more to it. I am an early childhood educator and had already had a child so it was hard to be in denial. 

The results took a long time to come back. We didn’t get her results until she was 13 months old. I will never forget being at work when the pediatrician called me saying ‘we have answers, when can you come into the clinic’.  My heart dropped and I felt instantly sick. There were so many things it could have been and all I was hoping, was that it wasn’t something that is degenerative. 

When the pediatrician described Cri Du Chat to us, it started to feel like a relief, knowing it was something that can be managed with therapy and support. 

From that moment we got on to NDIS and did all we could to find the best therapies for her so that she could be the best version of herself possible. 

We did and still do Physio, OT, Speech, hydrotherapy, feeding therapy. We also did a lot of social activities in mainstream like kinder gym, art school etc. We never treated Hazel differently and tried to involve her as much as possible in everything. We did a lot of alternative things which I strongly believe have helped a lot, in particular homeopathy. We have been working with a homeopath who specialises in complex kids. We have also done reiki healings and sacral cranio therapy. We have done brain therapy also. We have been using a PONDS device to stimulate the brain during our physio activities with the Timmermans method. 

Although controversial, I believe it is through the alternative therapies that Hazel has had her most gains.

Milestones 

• Hazel sat up at 8 months old 
• She crawled at 13 months 
• She walked at 18 months 
• Now at 3.5 years old she can do a genuine jump with two feet off the floor and jump up and down on a trampoline, climb most playground equipment independently and keep up with others running around at a park.
• She can ride a scooter (but tires easily) 
• She is currently learning to ride a bike 

• She started using key word sign from 12 months old. 
• Her first words were around 18 months – Mamma, more, go, bye, no 
• From there her speech has progressed more and more. She struggles with clear articulation but we understand most of what she can say. 
• currently at 3.5 years she can say a sentence with up to 5 words- Some things she currently says  ‘can i watch something now?’. ‘I want to eat please’. ‘I need water mummy’. Expresses feelings, ‘im hungry’, ‘im scared’. ‘watch me’.
• Today when i dropped her at her art school she said, ‘Thats my friend’ AND ‘i love you, have a good day mummy’.  

We are working on sounds and clear articulation. This is probably her biggest challenge. 

One of her recent biggest achievements is she is toilet trained as of 3 years old. She still wears a sleep nappy to bed but during the day she is fully toilet trained. This process took about 8- 12 months. But we never put limitations on her and started training her at the typical age of every other child and persisted with it and as always she surprised us. 

Socially, she always makes friends wherever we go, despite her language difficulties. She is very affectionate and kind, always shares, has a kind smile which kids are drawn to. She has age appropriate interests like Elsa (Frozen), Minnie Mouse, Peppa pig which makes it easy to relate to her peers. 

We are so proud of her and how she is going. Most people would have no idea she has a disability by just looking at her. Often when we tell people, they respond with, ‘You would never know’. 

We have worked hard as a team to find the best support for her possible. She is such a determined and now very independent little girl. She attends a mainstream art school and will begin preschool in mainstream at the beginning of next year. 

If you ever want to reach out to me. Please do at ksantoro174@gmail.com

I am happy to chat via email or over the phone. 

When finding out the news I initially thought why me, why us and  my life is over. (Embarrassing to admit) . But now I can confidently say Hazel has changed my life for the better. She has proven to us that she can do anything despite her limitations. I have such a different perspective on life & am also a better teacher too. We have gone on to have another baby and Hazel loves being a big sister. I feel so blessed to have 3 gorgeous girls . ♥️