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A Four-Year-Old Girl With Cerebral Palsy Has Become An Instagram Star

A Four-Year-Old Girl With Cerebral Palsy Has Become An Instagram Star

Finley Smallwood is four years old and has cerebral palsy but that doesn’t stop her owning it.

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

A girl with cerebral palsy has become an online sensation with 112,000 social media followers despite being just four years old.

Finley Smallwood from Eastvale, California has become very popular online not only for her stylish outfits that often match with her mother, but also her efforts to raise awareness of what it's like growing up as a kid with cerebral palsy.

Her mum, Christina, is behind the whole show and set up the Instagram account as well as a blog to tell her daughter's story.

Christina wanted to show what life was like bringing up a child with cerebral palsy
Barcroft Images


The latest Instagram star is just 4 years old
Barcroft Images

She told Barcroft TV: "I was very, very depressed post Finley's diagnosis and so I spent a lot of hours just scouring the internet trying to find other moms that I could connect with and there really weren't that many,

"I found one mom who was a huge advocate for her son, who has a little more severe case of cerebral palsy. And just watching her do these posts I was like, 'I want to do that, too'.

"So I started a secret account and I called it FIFI + MO. I didn't tell my husband, I didn't tell my friends or family-anybody. I just started posting."

It didn't take too long for it to take off and people are now following from across the globe to check out her style, but also how she copes with being a young person living with the disease.

Her photos often feature her walking frame, which Finley uses to help her get about.

Cerebral palsy affects Finley's movement, her motor skills and muscle tone. It's usually brought on by injury to the brain before or during birth.

Finley, who was adopted at birth, was born with the disease, but not diagnosed until she was 15 months old. Her birth mother had to have an emergency C-section after bleeding on Finley's brain.

Christina said: "I walked in the room and there was Finley in the little incubator just breathing so slowly and she had all these wires and tubes,

"She was three pounds and I just instantly fell in love with her and I wanted to climb in there and protect her and just promise her the world.

"The five weeks that Finley was in the hospital after she was born were very difficult for us. We didn't know if she was going to have severe disabilities."

Since then there have been all sorts of problems and Finley has had to have several surgeries as a result of her condition. More are on the horizon, but they try to stay positive.

Finley was born with the disease.
Barcroft Images

Finley has had to have several surgeries as a result of her condition.
Barcroft Images

Her mum thinks Finley helps them have a good attitude about things:

She said: "The days are going to be hard, going to be a lot of difficulties and lonely days - and days where you just want to pull you hair out and cry.

"You just literally have to be positive about your life. Because no one's life is easy but get up, get ready, go out there, let your light shine-and honestly Finley is just a little light."

Featured Image Credit: Barcroft Images

Topics: Viral, Instagram, UK News, Interesting, Feels, US News