It seemed such an appalling defect to have that we simply didn’t expect Cameron to grow up at all. We didn’t find out until after he was born – it was difficult to persuade our GP that there was a problem, and I had to ask my sister, who works for the NHS, to come in to casualty to convince them that he was ill.

Anyway, it was a relief to know that there was a name for it, and I didn’t have to watch him just fade away at home. Apparently the surgery was difficult, because of his coronary arteries, and we
know that he will need surgery on his valve before he is much older.

We couldn’t find any information about the kind of health problems that he might have – it was suggested that we were creating the problem by worrying about him, but we just wanted to be prepared.

Cameron was slow to talk, and still plays with his very young toys. He is immature and at 7 years old he can’t read or write. Also he has problems distinguishing between fantasy and reality.

We are finding it hard to provide him with the kind of support he needs to stay at school, as apparently he does not need a special school, but we are worried that some time soon he will feel different and unhappy.

Reading through what I have written I can see it sounds as if our family relationships are very cold. I have to write objectively, because otherwise I would get emotional – he is my precious boy who still snuggles up to me to watch ‘his’ cartoons, and loves to play football with his Dad and younger brother.