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Eight-year-old Savannah West has only just taken her first steps – all thanks to a harness her father, Richard, bought for her.
When Savannah was born, her doctors and parents immediately noticed that she suffered from various medical conditions. She was first assumed to be visually impaired, but doctors quickly realized that this wasn’t the case.
Savannah suffered from a bowel problem (that was corrected by surgery) and subsequently diagnosed with epilepsy, global development delay, as well as a form of cerebral palsy.
But when it came to Savannah’s inability to move – and her later failure to learn how to walk – doctors couldn’t begin to understand what was wrong.
The West family has taken their daughter to doctors all over the country and even sought out medical attention abroad, in hopes of finding a cure, or at least, a way to better support their daughter. But these efforts were to no avail.
Every single test was inconclusive.
In spite of all these obstacles, Savannah’s parents do their best to remain optimistic. Their daughter, though still unable to walk, has made vast improvements. She can now crawl by herself and ride an adapted tricycle.
Most recently, the girl’s parents have finally seen their daughter take her first steps.
After a friend shared a link of specially adapted harness equipment – in which a child could be strapped against the body of their parent and “walk” along with them – the West family was determined to invest in this for their daughter.
Once Savannah’s father, Richard, found a harness on eBay for just over $300, he bought it without second thought. Thanks to the harness, Savannah has just taken her first steps, alongside her dad.
“The first time we put her in the walker she was absolutely over the moon,” Richard recalled. “We only just got it but it makes her face light up. We filmed it because she was so happy. She found it amazing.”
You can watch the father-daughter walking duo here:
