A girl remained wheelchair-bound for eight long years because her mother made false claims about her health. The mother claimed that her daughter was supposedly suffering from ‘fits.’
Mother Kept Daughter Bound To A Wheelchair For Eight Years With False Medical Claims
By
Zainab Pervez in
Heartbreaking
On 12th February 2021
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A girl remained wheelchair-bound for 8 years because her mother made false health claims
A girl remained wheelchair-bound for eight long years because her mother made false claims about her health. The mother claimed that her daughter was supposedly suffering from ‘fits.’ The mother persuaded doctors her healthy daughter was disabled and needed a wheelchair, artificial feeding, and drugs to prevent epileptic fits.
The 12-year-old girl had to keep up with her mother’s exaggerated false claims and underwent unsolicited medical treatments and even had to go to school in a wheelchair.
Specialists started to question the symptoms and diagnosis
According to the judge, in 2018, some specialists started to question the many symptoms and other diagnoses that the girl supposedly had. When the girl left home, she was scrutinized at a specialist unit. Soon, the council social services bosses demanded a family court litigation. They said that between 2011-2018, the girl’s mother made many false, exaggerated claims about her daughter’s health condition and behavior.
They revealed that the woman had 'perpetuated the notion' the girl had 'uncontrolled epilepsy and autism' plus other diseases.
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The woman denied the allegations but the court ruled against her
The woman denied the allegations, but Mrs. Justice Judd ruled against her. The family cannot be named for legal reasons and the judge has not identified the council involved.
In a court hearing, Mrs. Justice Judd said that over the years, the girl was subjected to many “investigations and assessments.” She was also made to consume a drug that could have deteriorated her vision. The girl is now with her relatives, but the judge says that important decisions regarding her long-term care will have to be undertaken.
The court gave the ruling after examining evidence at a private hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London in October.
The girl is quite normal after social workers took her from her mother
The judge agreed to the fact that the girl had suffered from seizures, but the lawyers claimed that the mother had been suffering from “legitimate anxiety”. However, the judge believed that the mother went too far with her false claims and had crossed all the limits. “I cannot say at this point what was driving the mother to portray her child as having so many problems,” said the judge.
The girl is now healthy after social workers took her from her mother in October 2019.
'It became rapidly clear that she is very much a normal child. She is physically quite normal and energetic.' Said the Judge. She further added: 'The contrast to the girl that the mother described to all the professionals from 2012 onwards is enormous.'