The family of a 4-year-old girl with a rare degenerative condition have urged people to get out this weekend in support of their campaign to raise awareness.

People all over the region and country are being urged to join the Wobble Walk this Sunday, December 6, using the hashtag #WobbleWalk to spread awareness of Ataxia.

Young Mollie Lawson was diagnosed with Ataxia in December 2018, after her parents Emily and Dale were forced through a lengthy process to find the cause behind her symptoms.

The condition means Mollie had a delayed development, first learning to walk at around 22 months old, and struggles with some of her movement and speech.

“Mollie is amazing and puts a smile on everyone's face,” said her mum, Emily.

“She is our happy, bubbly 4 year old who loves to dance and sing.

News Shopper:

“The effects of Ataxia cause her to walk with a wobble and loose her balance often, our reality is that the symptoms usually progress and are similar to that of MS, Parkinsons disease and in some cases ALS - yet very few have heard of Ataxia.”

Emily said that Mollie has always loved dancing and finds the faster movements involved much easier than activities involving fine motor control like drawing.

She attends classes in Rochester where she lives, but also takes part in Tiny Tots sessions at Bexleyheath’s Jacjossa Academy for performing arts – which will be lending its support to the #WobbleWalk campaign.

Amid this year’s coronavirus pandemic – life has been made even harder for Mollie and her parents, with many procedures such as genetic testing delayed or prioritised for higher risk patients.

While a diagnosis helped to explain Mollie’s symptoms, the family still do not know the type of Ataxia which Mollie is affected by – with many different underlying causes behind different versions of the condition.

While Ataxis is a progressive disease, there is currently no known cure and treatment generally involves both speech and physical therapy to help patients manage their condition.

The family wants to help boost research into the condition, in the hope of helping Mollie continue to enjoy her life to the fullest.

“She’s enjoying herself at the moment, which we are very thankful for, but we know it could be much harder in the future,” Mollie’s mum added.

News Shopper:

“It’s really important she keeps moving and staying active – that’s why we’re asking people to get out this weekend to support our #WobbleWalk.

"We're asking people to donate money if they can, but otherwise even if they can go out walking and share their pictures with #WobbleWalk just to help spread more awareness of Ataxia as a condition.

"We will be donating it all via the Big Give Christmas Campaign, who will double our donations for Ataxia UK".

You can donate to Mollie’s JustGiving page here and find the WobbleWalk Facebook page here, you can also find out more from Ataxia UK.