If your child is diagnosed with cerebral palsy, there are some things that you can expect. Some of the hardships that your family will face because of the birth injury that your child suffered will be financial. Others will be personal and emotional. Cerebral palsy always entails quite a few challenges, but with good information and good resources, many people who suffer with this disorder live very rich and fulfilling lives.
Mobility
Mobility will not become an issue right away, as your child would not be expected to be walking for a while, anyway. It will, however, most likely become an issue. Depending upon the severity of the cerebral palsy with which your child suffers, their mobility may be impaired to a greater or lesser extent. Expect to have to learn a lot about assistive devices for mobility and to have to deal with the costs of these devices, which are sometimes quite high.
Feeding and Care
Some children with cerebral palsy will be dependent upon other people to give them care for their entire lives. This means that you will have to learn how to provide this care, of course. At some point, your child will need to find or to have provided for them a professional caregiver who can take over when you can no longer deliver the level of care that your child needs. Sometimes, this care is extensive. It may include feeding the child, attending to their hygiene, and physically moving them from place to place.
Education
Some schools have very good special education available. This isn’t always the case, however. Even if you do have good special education available in your school district, you may want to hire a tutor to help your child succeed in school. This can be expensive and it can take quite a long time to find exactly the right tutor for your child’s needs.
Cerebral palsy in infants is sometimes caused by brain injuries that result from medical malpractice. A cerebral palsy lawyer can sit down with you and help you to determine whether or not there is enough reason to believe that medical negligence played a part in your child suffering cerebral palsy to justify filing a lawsuit. You don’t have to pay upfront legal fees to do so either. Just about every attorney will be willing to work on a contingency (no-win, no-fee) basis.