The mother of a little girl who has cerebral palsy got a wonderful surprise recently when she walked, unaided, for the first time in her life.
Lovely Johnson, who lives in Austin, Texas, recorded the special moment when her 6-year-old daughter, Love, took her first steps.
“This moment felt like a dream come true,” Johnson told reporters on Monday. “I looked at her the way I looked at her when I gave birth to her. My heart was racing. I saw how excited my daughter was, and I knew a new chapter was about to begin.”
At the beginning of the video, Love holds herself up by leaning on a table, but then lets go and makes her way across the room to another piece of furniture. Once she reaches her destination, she laughs, then turns and makes her way back to the other side of the room.
“That is amazing!” her mother exclaims in the background.
Johnson posted the video to her Facebook page on Friday, and after 48 hours it gained over 30,000 likes and 20,000 shares from social media users.
“Most of you know my daughter has cerebral palsy and needs her Walker to get around. She decided to get up and try walking without her walker and braces,” Johnson wrote.
“My hero is not someone older than me it’s my 6 year old princess,” the proud mom concluded.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that cerebral palsy (CP) “is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture.”
The website continued:
CP is the most common motor disability in childhood. Cerebral means having to do with the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles. CP is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that affects a person’s ability to control his or her muscles.
The symptoms of CP vary from person to person. A person with severe CP might need to use special equipment to be able to walk, or might not be able to walk at all and might need lifelong care. A person with mild CP, on the other hand, might walk a little awkwardly, but might not need any special help. CP does not get worse over time, though the exact symptoms can change over a person’s lifetime.
Reports said the video of Love has been viewed over 1.2 million times by people who feel inspired by her efforts.
“She asked me to record her. Because she felt and knew she could do it,” her mother said. “She’s a very independent and intelligent girl and worked so hard for this moment.”
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