Blake Heath was a healthy, happy and extremely active four-year-old boy until he caught what his parents thought was a common cold.
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It turned he had something much more serious.
His mother Angela took him to the Leeton Hospital and after an examination, Blake was diagnosed with a viral infection and sent home. The next morning Blake awoke unable to move or support his own body weight and was throwing up.
It soon became clear that something was seriously wrong and after medical advice, Blake was air lifted to Sydney Children’s Hospital as he had gotten worse.
He arrived Friday, April 1 and his condition was worsening, the muscles in his neck had stopped working and he was admitted to ICU due to the respiratory problems this caused.
Blake was soon diagnosed with enterovirus which had left Blake with acute flaccid paralysis.
“It was so hard to see Blake not able to move,” Mrs Heath said. “Before he got sick he was a ball of energy, he didn’t stop from the time he got out of bed in the morning to the time he went to bed at night.
“To watch him be lifted up off the bed and not even be able to hold his head up was heart breaking, he had less function than a new born baby.”
Blake is still an inpatient at Sydney as he is undergoing intensive rehab to try and gain as much mobility and independence as possible.
Blake's family have been told he will leave hospital in a wheelchair and some type of permanent disability. He still does not have the ability to perform everyday activities such as walking, bathing, going to the toilet, dressing and the ability to play with his friends and family. Once Blake is released from hospital there will be return trips to Sydney every month, lots of rehab and the modification of the family home.
“As upsetting and stressful as this whole experience has been I still look at the situation we are in and think how incredibly lucky we are,” Mrs Heath said.
“If Blake wasn’t the determined, strong and courageous little fighter he is, the situation could have been so much worse, we could have lost him.
“We have amazing families that have given their love and support for the last seven weeks and will continue to be there for us throughout our hospital stay and once we return home. Laryn’s friends and work colleges at Guilford’s Transport have been great throughout this entire experience, we couldn't ask for more from them.”
A ‘Go Fund Me’ page is set up for Blake. www.gofundme.com/23tryght
