Despite receiving a diagnosis that she had little to no chance of becoming a mother, Shannon Conarty, 22, of Yorkshire, gave birth to a Mɪʀᴀᴄʟᴇ albino kid. When she was 15 years old, she experienced a hormonal imbalance and was subsequently identified as having polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). It led to the devastating realization that she would only have a 10% chance of conceiving naturally. After three years of trying with her partner, Tom Kane, 30, she was astonished to learn she was Pʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ.
She gave birth to tiny Ava, an albino child who is healthy, four months ago. This condition, known as congenital ᴅɪsᴇᴀsᴇ, is characterized in huᴍᴀɴs by the total or partial lack of pigment in the skin, hair, and eyes. The skin appears completely wʜɪᴛe, and the eyes may appear to be red. Being a mother has always been a dream of mine, said Shannon. Following her albinism diagnosis, Ava even more so feels like a small Mɪʀᴀᴄʟᴇ.
Around one in 17,000 persons in the UK have albinism, a disorder that results in a lack of pigment and can impair vision. But despite all the obstacles in her way, Shannon is simply overjoyed to be a mother.
When she was in her late teens, we began trying for a child. We fell in love, and Tom was sympathetic when I told him I probably wouldn’t have kids. We started trying for a child when I was 18, but I was never able to get Pʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ. I was devastated every month when I got my period. We even made the decision to use IVF if I wasn’t Pʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ by the time I was 25. Nevertheless, three years later, in January 2018, Shannon miraculously learned she was expecting.
As Shannon put it, “We were thrilled. I had additional scans to keep an eye on me, but my pregnancy went off without a ʜɪᴛch. A month after her birth, little Ava was given the diagnosis of albinism. We did not accept it. As children inherit it from their parents, doctors informed us that it was extremely rare. Tom and I are currently undergoing genetic testing to see which of us inherits the gene. Ava will always have red eyes and wʜɪᴛe hair. We won’t fully understand the extent of her partial blindness and increased sensitivity to sunshine until she is older. But the’s distinctive eye color attracts onlookers.
People always remark on how gorgeous she is when we leave the house, she continued. Nevertheless, despite the appreciative remakes, I am concerned about her as she ages. She won’t be able to drive because of her vision issues, and I’m concerned that she’ll face ʙᴜʟʟʏing at school. But we’ll teach her to accept herself just the way she is. She is, after all, our little Mɪʀᴀᴄʟᴇ.
