“I have one desire, that is for my son to see the light. Every parent hopes for a healthy and happy child, but my son has been unfairly deprived. Every day when I open my eyes, the first thing I see is his smile,” shares a young mother, Pham Kim Chi, aged just 21. Ten months ago, Chi gave birth to her son, Le Pham Hoang Nam, in an atmosphere of joy and happiness within their family of four. However, that joy was short-lived.
Chi and her husband embraced each other in tears when the doctor delivered the news: Nam had a congenital eye defect. He couldn’t open his eyes; both eyelids were tightly closed, shrouding the light from his life.
.or at four months old, the examination results consistently showed a distressing reality: Nam had congenital double eyelid closure. Before this, all of Chi’s prenatal check-ups had indicated normal results. The young mother went through a challenging delivery, facing complications that led to emergency surgery and subsequent postoperative infections, adding to her emotional burden.
From the moment Nam was born, Chi peered into darkness, determined to be strong for her son. Despite seeking medical opinions, the doctors in Vietnam provided little hope, expressing uncertainty about the possibility of corrective interventions.
Reflecting on the journey, Chi shares, “I underwent labor for days and couldn’t deliver naturally, so I had to undergo emergency surgery. After that, I suffered postoperative infections, tied to bed rest for a month. Having a second child, I felt painful and sorry.”
Chi, with tears in her eyes, made a solemn vow to confront life head-on for her son. However, the family’s journey from Nghe An to Hanoi brought more despair, as doctors shook their heads, deeming Nam’s condition beyond intervention.
Watch the heartwarming video of Nam’s carefree smile
“I took him to the National Institute of Ophthalmology for the first examination when he was one month old and revisited for follow-up checks, but the results were always the same. Despite his closed eyelids, his adorable smile and tiny hands reaching out for affection melt my heart,” Chi emotionally recounts. She now dreams of taking Nam to Singapore for specialized treatment, even though the estimated costs exceed their family’s financial capabilities.
“Is your family considering bringing Nam to Singapore for examinations?”
Having read articles about babies finding their sight through examinations in Singapore, Chi feels a glimmer of hope, a 1% chance that her son could witness his parents’ faces for the first time in his life. However, the financial burden is immense, with each examination costing 200 million VND (approximately $8,700), an amount far beyond the reach of her family.
Chi, currently unemployed, and her husband, a manual laborer, struggle to make ends meet, particularly when facing unexpected medical expenses. When an email from a Singaporean hospital inquired about the family’s ability to bring Nam to Singapore for tests, Chi found herself in a difficult situation.
“Is your family considering bringing Nam to Singapore for examinations?” Chi recalls reading the email. Her response, laden with desperation, described the financial impossibility of their situation. “We do want to bring him abroad, but our financial situation is beyond our means. We do not have the resources,” Chi explained.
Facing judgment from online comments accusing her of seeking attention, Chi took a stand, providing official documents, including Nam’s birth certificate and hospital records, to support her statements. “I wish to take my son for examinations abroad – like many other fortunate children who have found light – but we cannot afford it,” Chi expressed.
Now, Chi hopes for a miracle as she prepares to take Nam to the DND International Eye Hospital, where a Singaporean doctor will conduct an examination on May 19th. If there is an opportunity, Nam might regain his sight, experiencing the world like many other children.
This poignant story sheds light on the challenges faced by a young mother and her determination to give her son the chance to see the light, even in the face of financial struggles and societal skepticism.
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