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Our little angel

A serious car accident saw this Foxton toddler fitted with his very own halo

After miraculously surviving a horrific car crash, Tyler Young (1) has been a little angel throughout his gruelling recovery – and he has the halo to prove it!

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In August, his mum Angela was out driving, with Tyler strapped into his car seat, when she was involved in a collision with another vehicle for which the other driver is currently facing court action. Tyler suffered severe whiplash, and a fracture between his skull and spine. To treat his injuries, doctors had to put the active toddler into a full body cast and attach a metal halo to his skull with eight screws. Tyler is the youngest New Zealander ever fitted with the contraption.

Angela (35), of Foxton, who broke a foot and dislocated an elbow in the accident, is slowly adjusting to caring for her injured son, who can barely move in the frame. Due to his cage of metal, the little boy can’t even be cuddled properly. Because she’s still recovering from her own injuries, Angela’s husband Rob has been their son’s main caregiver.

“Luckily, Tyler has adapted to everything really well. He’s a happy child and that’s been a huge blessing,” says Angela. “If Tyler was stressed, it would be much more diffi cult for us all to cope. It has been hard having him in the cast and halo, but Tyler’s car seat saved his life and we’re so grateful he’s still here with us.”

The cheerful wee boy has now become so used to his metal headgear that when he celebrated his fi rst birthday with a party recently, he seemed content to stand out from his little friends. “Tyler was looking at the other kids and I could tell he was thinking, ‘Where’s all the stuff around your head?,” Angela laughs.

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Any day now, his three long months of treatment will be over and Tyler will finally be free of his metal frame and cast. The only permanent result of the accident is a lifetime ban on playing any contact sports that could damage his neck. “I can’t wait to be able to cuddle him properly,” says Rob. “It will be great to finally see him toddling around.”

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