Let’s give Normantas a chance to see again!

Normantas Prusinskas is a boy in Lithuania that I have never met. I would probably still not know anything about him and his life, if it was not for someone sharing his story on Facebook. As I was looking at it, there was a picture of Normantas standing next to his mother Joana and a brief message asking for help. A beautiful picture of a mother and son and what is so special about it? - one would think. Yes, It is an ordinary picture except that Normantas is blind. I quickly searched for more information about him and his condition and found one article on a local website that featured the teenager's story:

'I want to go home' - writes Normantas Prusinskas on a classboard at school. That would not surprise anyone at all except that the boy is blind. Even though he was only 6 when he lost his sight due to rare case of toxocariasis, he still perfectly remembers the alphabet which he had learned before losing his sight.

His normal day at school does not differ from that of other schoolchildren's except that he uses Braille writing system to write down his homework. Always cheerful Normantas is loved by his classmates and he has many friends and supporters. No one ever saw him complaining about why he is the one that can not see while others can.
 
Many people and teachers were saying that it would have been better if Normantas had attended a special school for blind people away from home but his parents did not give in. They decided that Normantas would go to the regular school, stay close to his friends and siblings and would not suffer from missing home. His parents decided to do everything to make sure his childhood would be as bright as possible.

'Normantas is a talented child'- says his mother. When he was not even 3, he got interested in letters, learned the alphabet and to write his name.
After celebrating his third birthday, his parents noticed that he started walking closer to the Tv screen to make sure coul see better. They were also worried about his left eye which was constantly teary. They took Normantas to see medical proffesionals in the capital and it was found that Normantas had toxocariasis.

TOXOCARIASIS

Toxocariasis is a rare infection caused by roundworm parasites. It is spread from animals to humans via their infected faeces. Roundworm parasites are most commonly found in cats, dogs and foxes and usually affect young children. This is because children are more likely to come into contact with contaminated soil when they play and put their hands in their mouths.However, cases have been reported in people of all ages.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:
For most people, an infection with these roundworm larvae causes no symptoms and the parasites die within a few months.
However, some people experience mild symptoms such as a cough, a high temperature (fever), headaches and stomach pain.
In rare cases, the roundworm larvae infect organs such as the liver, lungs, eyes or brain and cause severe symptoms such as fatigue, loss of appetite, breathing difficulties, blurred or cloudy vision in one eye.

WHY IT HAPPENS:
The roundworm parasites responsible for toxocariasis (called Toxocara) live in the digestive system of dogs, foxes and cats. The worms produce eggs, which are released in the faeces of infected animals and contaminate soil.
If small particles of contaminated soil get into someone's mouth, they may develop toxocariasis.
It's not possible for someone with toxocariasis to pass it directly to another person.

HOW IT'S TREATED:
If you have no or mild symptoms, treatment is not usually necessary.
However, you will need medication if you have a severe infection affecting your organs. Specifically, a type of medication called an anthelminthic is used to kill the parasites.

If your eye is affected by toxocariasis, anthelminthics are not used, but steroid medication (corticosteroids) may be required to suppress inflammation.  Surgery may also be needed, for example if you develop retinal detachment.
Most cases make a full recovery and don't experience any long-term complications. However, there is a risk of permanent vision loss if one of the eyes is affected.



This is exactly what happened to Normantas as he developed retinal detachment in the left eye due to toxocariasis. At the age of 6 he was not able to see anything with his right eye as well .He was still able to distinguish brightness from darkness for some time but now he lives in the complete dark and only remembers how colourful the world could be.

Normant's mum cannot undertsand how the contaminated eggs moved to the boy's body because the family did not have a cat or a dog when the boy was growing up.
Even though Normantas has been living in the dark for 8 years, he still knows how to orient outside. His parents laugh that he can even tell what the weather is without being able to see it. It was 1st of January when the sun came out in his native town for the first time. 'The sun is shining' - Normantas said when walking outside with his parents. 'He is a very sensitive child, I sometimes think that he sees more than other children' - his mother remarks.

It's true, when you look at him, it is hard to notice and think that he can not see. He likes to hang out with friens, he likes to goof around like all teenagers do, he even manages to run away from others while playing catch. He knows the way to and from school perfectly and rides a bike in summer, obviously staying out off busy streets and when he hears an approaching car, he moves away immediately. His parents encourage his independence but that comes with a price and they always fear that something bad may happen.

Normantas even plays football, he is a goalkeeper at his school and locates the approaching ball from the sound of it. Of course, to kick the ball back he has to ask for help from his younger brother Neimantas.

The local medicine proffesionals claimed that there was no chance for Normantas to start seeing again however his mother did not want to believe in that. She contacted Ernst Muldashev, a known eye specialist in Ufa, Russia and after one visit she knew that there was hope. However, there were many troubles the family ran into as journeys to Russia were long, it was difficult to get Visas and none of the medical expenses were funded by neither Lithuanian nor Russian health services. As the family with three kids did not have any spare money, they were left with one option only - trying to raise money.

Many amazing people helped him out, starting with local residents, school staff, parents of his classmates and ending with many good people in Lithuania who supported the cause. Their efforts enabled Normantas to have necessary operations and since that he has already had three. However, there is one operation left which is the most important one as Normantas may be able to see if it goes well. Unfortunately, the family is having hard time trying to raise money for this operation and medical expenses and needs our help more than ever.

So this is the story of Normantas, a boy that I have never met. Thanks to social networking sites and kindness that still lives inside us, I know about him and you know about him too. I know that Normantas is not my brother, not my relative but that makes me think:
'What if that happened to my brother? To my cousin? What would I do? What would the struggle be like?'

We all live and take things for granted, never think that we have so much given to us that can be so easily taken away. We live and worry about silly little things like weighting 1lb too much, about wrong hairstyle, about our noses/arms/thighs/feet/whatever that are either too big or too small for us and forget that sometimes the only way to be happy is to make someone else happy.
So I feel ashamed of myself but I believe that even if we can not change the whole world, we can make a good starting point by doing little things, by giving.

Please join me in this beautiful cause. Donate as little as you can or as much as you want. Your donations will cover the costs of Normantas journey to Russia, his operation, medical expenses and any medicines he needs. All of this costs about £3000. By doing so, you are not supporting me, you are supporting this young boy, you are supporting his dream and most importantly you are supporting the idea of kindness.

You are also supporting yourselves because the only thing one can ever regret is not doing enough good.