Everyone has their own path that they must walk. While we may complain about circumstances or inconveniences in our lives, most of us don’t have to endure the challenges and hardships that others go through. Particularly individuals who live with disorders. Rather than seeing this as a reason to give up, it works as a fuel to live life to the fullest, conquering every trial and tribulation. Charlotte Garside is considered the world’s smallest girl but she might also have the world’s biggest personality.Her condition came as a shock to everyone as none of the doctors saw anything unusual until her birth on August 2007. Emma Newman, Charlotte’s mother, explained, “I had the scans and it all seemed ok. I was massive, so we didn’t think there was anything to be worried about.”
Chloe, Sabrina, and Sophie, who were then 10, 7, and 3 respectively, were very excited about the latest addition to the family. Emma went into labor four weeks early, with the doctors assuming she was only 24 weeks pregnant. “I was in a lot of pain and in an emotional state. No one seemed to know what was happening, apart from my baby was maybe premature,” Emma recalls.
After days of testing, she was diagnosed with majewski osteody splastic primordial dwarfism (MOPD), a genetic condition affecting approximately 100 people in the world. Charlotte was born a fighter. Further tests showed she has MOPD Type 1 and Type 3, therefore, avoiding the more severe symptoms, including the potentially lethal brain aneurysms.
Back then she was just 68cm tall and weighed less than 9 lbs. She was no bigger than a newborn, still Charlotte is determined to lead a normal life. “She may be small but she has a massive personality and wants to do everything a normal five-year-old does,” Emma explains.
“Of course, I was worried she could get hurt by the other children, but she has her own tutor look after her and she’s not as fragile as you’d think,” says the proud mama.
When Charlotte was six, she went to Big Sheep & Little Cow farm in Bedale, Yorks with her mother and sister Sophie. There she met a continental giant rabbit, which can grow up to 31 inches long. That didn’t deter Charlotte from cuddling with the giant animal.
