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Doctors knew from the moment of Nicky Zahorcak’s birth that he had a skin condition that would plague him for the rest of his life. Zahorcak, 19, suffers from recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB), a condition that causes his skin to be fragile and blister incredibly easily.
Anything as slight as a scratch or a gentle rub can cause a blister to form, one that has to be lanced, drained, and cleaned to prevent infection. Zahorcak’s doctors didn’t think he would survive past his first birthday because there were too many ways he could fatally injure himself.
Zahorcak’s mother, Silvia Corradin, however, is determined to keep her son alive.
She’s spent every day since his birth wrapping his entire body in bandages to keep his skin from coming in harsh contact with other surfaces. “He feels very safe in his cocoon of bandages, he can scratch the itchy skin without causing damage to himself and it also protects him,” she explained.
“If he was to fall without his bandages it would be really bad, he would be full of blisters and screaming in pain for a long time.”
When Zahorcak was just ten months old, Corradin accidentally stepped on his hand. All of his skin was taken off in that moment, and it took months for his hand to properly heal. Corradin felt like she was “the worst mother in the world.”
Although Zahorcak’s hand did heal over time, it was difficult for Corradin to shake off her bad feeling.
Her son’s condition caused him to miss out on a lot of normal childhood activities, like playing outside. Large wounds would take far too long to heal, and small blisters sometimes never completely went away.
It wasn’t long until Zahorcak’s delicate condition forced him to remain wheelchair-bound, simply to avoid him injuring himself.
Corradin confessed that caring for her son has caused her to sell her house, cars, and other luxury items. The bandages and medication are incredibly costly. Despite her best attempts though, Corradin has also had to declare bankruptcy.
She now tries her best to spread awareness of Zahorcak’s rare, incurable disease and gather support – be it moral or financial – from people on Facebook.
