About M. Nathan


M. Nathan, a gift from God.

My name is M. Nathan D. Following a perfectly normal, uneventful pregnancy and a short, easy delivery I was born in Hamburg on my mother's birthday (2 days earlier than the doctors had predicted).

Apart from newborn jaundice I seemed to be a healthy baby and my mother took me home a week after I was born.

For the first two months I was a "cry baby" who screamed and screamed, but no-one could say why, even after lots of visits to different doctors. When I was 8 months old and still couldn't crawl my paediatrician prescribed me physiotherapy, where my parents were advised to take me to see a specialist. I think the physiotherapist already suspected something but didn't want to be the one to tell my parents.

After a lengthy examination at the K. Kneisner Institute the diagnosis was made quite quickly: "Cerebral-spastic diplegia" (cerebral palsy)".

They said: "Your son is handicapped and no-one can say how he will develop."

My parents' world fell apart when they heard the diagnosis. I've got two siblings who are both perfectly normal, healthy children. So my parents didn't have any experience with handicapped children or adults. The worst thing of all was that in the whole 8 months no-one had doubted that my development was normal, although my parents had taken to me to lots of doctors. My legs were not as flexible as those of other children my age and my development was delayed.

My parents were told that they would need to give me lots of time and patience.

They are very patient with me and stimulate me a lot, taking me for different therapy sessions that you will hear more about later.

I am now 6 years old and can do lots of things, for example crawl, sit unassisted and even kneel alone for a few minutes. My speech is improving every day and I can even say 3 – 4 word sentences. All of these successes are thanks to the many Therapies I do.

My parents and siblings have not given up hope and are pleased with every bit of progress I make, no matter how large or small it is.