A “miracle” Nebraska woman born without a brain defied the odds as her family marked her 20th birthday — decades after parents were told she’d never make it to 5, reports said.
Alex Simpson turned 20-years-old Nov. 4, KETV reported.
Simpson’s parents had been told she was a healthy child until a check-up two months later revealed that their daughter had hydranencephaly – a rare condition that left her with just a pinky’s worth of brain matter at the base of her skull, the report said.
At the time, the Nebraska family were told Alex wouldn’t live past 4 years old.
“Twenty years ago we were scared, but faith, I think, is really what kept us alive,” Shawn Simpson, Alex’s father, told the TV station.
Though Alex is missing the parts of the brain capable of seeing and hearing, her family believes she’s more aware than people think.
“Say somebody’s stressed around her. Nothing will even happen — it could be completely silent — but Alex will know. She’ll feel something,” SJ, Alex’s 14-year-old brother, told the outlet.
“Like, if my grandma’s hurting, in her back, she’ll radiate off of it – it’s crazy,” he said.
SJ said he is proud to be Alex’s brother and has spent a lot of time researching her condition to learn how to support her.
Alex’s strength inspires the whole Simpson family, who call her a “miracle.”
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