Raven Ford endures cruel comments when she takes her young daughter out in public.
One-year-old Amelia has a rare skin condition that makes her skin thick, shiny and scaly. She requires constant care and, oddly, baths with bleach in the water to help prevent infections.
The Daily Mail reports the Superior, Wisconsin mother is dedicated to serving her daughter’s needs and helping others understand her rare condition, lamellar ichthyosis.
“I’d really like people to stop judging things they think are out of the ordinary, especially parenting choices,” she said of Amelia and her bleach water baths. “Her torso is more or less always scaly, with a texture like you’re petting a snake.”
Ford said dermatologists recommended the bleach because her daughter’s skin cannot tolerate soap and the thick, scaly skin is prone to infections.
“I put two tablespoons of bleach in her bath water every other day,” she said. “It’s controversial, and not everybody is comfortable with it, but it’s been recommended by dermatologists and it’s the only way to kill the bacteria under her scales.
“If we don’t do this, she can get infections or pockets of oil, which show up like yellow bumps on her scalp,” Ford continued.
When Amelia was born, she looked like a “little plastic doll,” and they knew immediately that something was wrong, her mother said.
Ford said it was frightening waiting for a diagnosis. Doctors later diagnosed Amelia with lamellar ichthyosis, but the family still is waiting on test results to find out how severe her condition is, according to the report.
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Here’s more:
The youngsters’ hard, shedding skin requires near constant moisturisation to keep it supple and prevent it snagging her clothes, with Amelia’s hair, skin and nails also being affected. …
Aside from bathing, Amelia also requires an intensive daily healthcare regimen.
Ms Ford, who is also mother to Benjamin Faice, six, and Cole Ford, two, said: ‘She takes fluoride supplements for her teeth, as we were warned the condition can cause some dental abnormalities.
‘We also have to put petroleum jelly round her mouth when she eats otherwise the food will stain her skin.
‘Her hair is quite brittle and can fall out easily, and her nails have begun to build up and harden too.’
Ms Ford manages her daughter’s condition by bathing her twice a day, as well as frequently applying moisturisers and steroid creams to her skin.
Despite the struggles, Ford said Amelia is a happy baby and does not understand the rude comments that people sometimes make when they are out in public.
“You don’t know what someone is dealing with, or why they are making the choices they are,” she said.
