9 SepNeeding a lot of love
This dear little boy is Zach. Most of us would have little understanding of the level of suffering in Zach’s short life so far. He has a whole bucket load of medical issues, including a severe seizure disorder and painful muscle spasms. His condition interferes with his ability to eat, and he has been gradually getting thinner and thinner. He also lost his entire family, along with any meaningful connections to people or place when he was abandoned. Since then, he has lived under an assigned name, in a place he doesn’t understand, with people he doesn’t know. Harrowing to think about, isn’t it?
No wonder Zach was unhappy and afraid when we met him.
Thankfully we have seen a remarkable turnaround with him. The healing power of kindness should never be underestimated. After treatment for pain, a good feed and a lot of cuddling, Zach was already more alert and relaxed. These pictures were taken after 24 hours in the Butterfly home. When he arrived, he looked very different to this.
Zach is still very ill and we believe his life expectancy will be reduced. There are a lot of abnormalities in his blood results and a lot of medical issues we still need to work through. Most of his difficulties are permanent, with no surgical cure or magic medicine to turn things around for him. But we know that it is possible for children like Zach to be happy and comfortable, to give and receive love, and have a life of meaning and joy. We see it happen here all the time – discarded children who thrive when they become treasured. We might not be able to turn things around for Zach in a medical sense, but we are quite certain we can turn his suffering into joy. We look forward to seeing smiles on this little face in the near future.
Tags: Zach
How is Zach doing?
He looks so similar to a boy I worked with when he came to the Changsha Butterfly Home. To my knowledge the other boy had no real formal diagnosis but it could possibly have been a genetic disorder.
Praying for him.
Zach’s doing OK – he’s on a lot of medications to control pain and seizures, so he’s more comfortable now. He’s started taking food orally from a spoon, and still has milk feeds in between. Last week he had no seizures and he gained some weight – so that’s two goals for him! This precious boy has a complicated medical situation and his life expectancy isn’t long, but we’re striving for comfort and quality of life for him. So much hard stuff has happened in his life – it’s time for him to experience tenderness and be loved just the way he is.