Donna B's quilt    (Quilt Completed)

Thank you

It is absolutely beautiful. Can't wait to show it to Donna tomorrow when she wakes up. Really has cheered me up after what has been the hardest 7 weeks of my life. I used to do cross stitch years ago so I appreciate all the work that has gone into it. It is such beautiful quality work. Thank you from the bottom of my heart xx

Finished photos

Individual squares

Fabric

Card

Stitched by: Sandra

Biography

Donna is 18 years old she has profound and multiple learning difficulties. She was reported to have had a normal birth and then when she was placed in foster care at 17 months old she had significant global development delay and epilepsy. After fostering her I went on to adopt her at 4 yrs 4 months. She was shortly given the diagnoses of cerebral palsy, severe learning difficulties and epilepsy.

She started walking independently when she was 5 yrs old following Botox injections. Then at 7 yrs old her behaviour became more difficult and she eventually went into the autistic unit at school when she was 12 yrs old. It was during this time that her walking started to become more difficult and her seizures were becoming more difficult to control.

At 13 yrs old she had gone downhill considerably and spent 4 months in hospital after a long acute intensive care admission. It then became apparent that she had a epilepsy syndrome and was given a vagus nerve stimulator (like a pace maker) to help control the seizure. Over the next 6-12 months Donna lost the ability to walk and also needed a gastrostomy for fluids and then later to help with feeds too.

Over the last 3 yrs since our new hospital intensive care unit has opened she has had around 12-14 admissions requiring her to be put on life support. Her epilepsy is very severe and life threatening. She also has lots of chest infections and requires regular suctioning. A months ago nerve & muscle tests were done and Donna is now found to have a regressive nerve disease which is cruelly taking a lot of her use of legs, arms and hands away already. December I was told she had lost her gag reflex and her swallow is not regular and all food has to be stopped which was devastating for her as it was her main pleasure in life.

She is currently in the pediatric intensive care unit as she has pneumonia again and her epilepsy in very poorly controlled. She was taken off the life support after 2 days then due to further seizures had a second respiratory arrest and needed ventilating again on day 5. We are currently on day 9 and hoping soon she will be well enough to come off it.