Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow: Our Progress and Plans

Antosia is already over 5.5 years old. She is a very active preschooler. She loves the pool, her balance bike, board games, and playing with her younger sisters. She also loves animals, from kittens and puppies to turtles and hedgehogs.

Thanks to her determination, patience, and faith, we don’t have to coax her into tedious rehabilitation, where results aren’t visible after one, two, or even ten sessions. Our stubborn little girl can practice her balance for hours, only to proudly show us after a few months that she can stand still for a few seconds. This is no easy feat, as Antosia’s legs are not like those of other children—they even differ from each other. Finding her center of gravity, working on her balance, bending down, and turning around are often her own creative and highly effective solutions. Her gait is different from her peers, but Antosia is well aware that it’s not just her way of walking that differs. She knows she has a different hand, feet, and legs. She is aware of this, but it doesn’t bother her in her daily life. She proudly and independently walks with her preschool classmates to their weekly swimming lessons at a pool about 1.5 km away. With just a little help from adults, she is learning independence. During the upcoming winter break, she will go on her first week-long winter camp without her parents. Antosia is counting down the weeks with excitement, and while we are panicking a little, we believe she will manage just fine.

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This state of affairs and our relatively normal daily life is a dream come true for us. We would like to thank everyone who has been involved in securing funds for her treatment and rehabilitation. Thank you to the teachers, therapists, family, and friends for your support. The fact that you remember us in your annual tax declarations allows us to worry a little less about the future stages of her treatment. On a more measurable and quantifiable note: – So far, Antosia has undergone 6 surgeries and over 600 hours of rehabilitation. We have nearly 200 X-rays of her legs and hand, and 14 surgeons/orthopedists have evaluated and consulted on her treatment. – The cost of treatment covered by the National Health Fund (NFZ) is 1,100,000 PLN. The treatment, rehabilitation, and stay during her treatment in the USA, covered by funds raised through numerous charity campaigns, amounted to 420,000 PLN.

To ensure that Antosia won’t have to give up walking on her own two feet one day, she will undergo another complex stage of treatment in about a year. Dr. Paley will reconstruct her right ankle joint, as her heel is shifting upward and currently does not touch the ground (it is almost parallel to the tibia). He will also apply an external fixator to lengthen her right leg by about 8 cm. During her previous treatment, during the lengthening process of her right leg, the bone regenerate failed to form properly, and Antosia had to undergo an unplanned surgery. Let’s hope that this time there will be no complications. The cost of next year’s treatment is $170,000. We still hope that the National Health Fund (NFZ) will approve the continuation of her treatment, although orthopedic professors and specialists are divided on the subject of Antosia’s treatment. Thank you once again for remembering us during your tax returns. We know that Antosia still has at least 2-3 planned stages of treatment ahead of her (we don’t even want to think about unplanned ones). We would very much like Dr. Paley to oversee our daughter’s treatment—the doctor thanks to whom she is now walking and running…

Perhaps pirouettes are setting the bar too high, but looking back at our dreams from five years ago, who knows what the future holds…

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