Save Maksym! 2

Three-year-old Maksym needs a course of rehabilitation to strengthen his muscles, develop his speech, and learn to walk.

Maksym was born with hypoxia and umbilical cord entanglement – he didn’t cry or breathe. Doctors performed resuscitation and placed him on a ventilator, additionally diagnosing congenital pneumonia. The boy spent the first 12 days of his life in the NICU, 8 of them on a ventilator. For nearly a month and a half, he was fed through a tube; he had anemia until he was 5 months old, and later suffered seizures, for which he received anticonvulsant therapy. In total, Maksym spent nearly two months in the hospital.

And while the little boy was still fighting for his life, the war was already approaching their home. Two years ago, Maksym’s mother fled Chernihiv Oblast amid the sounds of explosions – holding the baby in her arms, pressing him to her chest.

Today, little Maksym is 3 years old. He breathes and eats on his own, sits, crawls, and holds his head up. But his arms and shoulders don’t yet obey him; the boy cannot walk on his own and does not speak fully.

“After undergoing rehabilitation, Maksym’s muscles have strengthened and his physical activity has improved; the child has started crawling, uses his hands better, and holds his head up. His speech has improved – my son has started saying new simple words and sounds and has learned to blow soap bubbles. Such a seemingly simple skill is extremely important for further speech development,” says Maksym’s mother.

Rehabilitation is yielding results. Maksym needs to continue – systematically and effectively. Please support this boy, who has been fighting for his future from his very first breath.