Adam is 14 years old. He has SLC13A5 deficiency. This is a rare inheritied genetic disorder that is caused by mutations on the SLC13A5 gene which is found on chromosome 17. The deficiency causes seizures within days after birth. Along with lifelong epilepsy, other problems with the condition include hypotonia (low muscle tone) severe speech delay, and developmental problems with teeth or lack of enamel. Adam has three older siblings who do not have this condition.

Adam has all of the above, he is fortunate to be mobile but has an ataxic like gait, because of this, seizures, his behavioural problems and lack of safety awareness, Adam often uses a wheelchair/buggy when out and about to keep him safe.

Adam in general is a very sociable and happy lad. He LOVES food and milkshake !! However over recent months Adam has refused to go to school or do some other activities that he used to enjoy. This is being looked into as he is unable to say why. He still enjoys going out with us as you can see !

And now onto the Ipad ! Having an ipad is a lifeline for both Adam and us. He likes to watch Cbeebies, especially Mr Tumble, he plays games on it, he also has a Grid Player on it that he sometimes uses for communication. His receptive language is better than his expressive. He wants the Ipad more or less all of the time, as soon as he wakes, to when he goes to bed, without it he can become quite destructive and sometimes lash out at us. He will throw things out of top windows, put things in the bin or down the toilet, rip curtains down from the rails, he even pulled his tv off the wall the other week, and we have all suffered scratches from him.

Adam does have an Ipad that we bought ourselves a few years ago, but when it needs charging or it has a problem it is then that we have a major problem as Adam doesn't know what to do with himself ! As he is with us the majority of the time with not going to school, you can imagine how often this happens ! We did get a second hand ipad to sort this and it was working well, with Adam being able to use one ipad while the other was charging, but its having more and more problems that are unable to be fixed. At least with a new one we could get repairs done though the Apple store as we have done with his first one.

Having an ipad makes car journeys, shopping trips, walks, home life, etc much smoother. We would all be very grateful if you could help us in our plight to keep Adam happy and for our sanity !! 😁

If we manage to raise all the amount and there happens to be any left over after buying an ipad, we would use the surplus for other things that Adam needs such as another anti suffocation pillow because of his epilepsy (£40) and possibly a handling belt (£25) to keep hold of him for when we are out.

Thank you for reading and hope you can help us ☺