The mum whose video of her sharing a heartwarming dance with her disabled son at her wedding has revealed he almost died while she was on honeymoon.
Appearing on This Morning, Jo Atrill told hosts Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford about the horrifying moment 13-year-old Alex Dieterie stopped breathing for 40 minutes.
The youngster has severe cerebral palsy and it was always Jo’s dream to dance with him, but she didn’t think it would be possible.
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However her new husband, Martin, was determined to make it come true and spent weeks learning to sew so he could make a special harness for Alex.
He strapped his new stepson to his chest and it enabled Jo to get her “perfect moment” with her son.
⚡️ “My perfect moment” by @JoAtrillhttps://t.co/oMyhkgHIyr
— Jo Atrill (@JoAtrill) March 29, 2017
Speaking of the surprise for his wife, Martin told Eamonn and Ruth:
“We had practised a few times. I didn’t think I was going to do it. I couldn’t hold his weight for too long.
“I don’t know how I got through it on the wedding day, it was the pressure of doing it in front of a crowd.”
Jo described the moment she got to dance with her son:
“It was very much like nobody else was in the room. It was just incredible.
“He was staring into my eyes the whole time, it was just magic, the best moment I’ve ever experienced.”
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But worryingly, when Jo and Martin were on honeymoon, Alex stopped breathing for 40 minutes and needed to be resuscitated.
Jo said: “We were really lucky our friends and family are very supportive and thought we needed a break and paid for us to go on honeymoon, which is incredible.
“But he was on high dependency and needed to be resuscitated while we were away. He stopped breathing so he was bad for 40 minutes.”
Fans immediately fell in love with the family, taking to Twitter to say they’d been crying their eyes out listening to their story.
@thismorning balling my eyes out at what a beautiful family you have sharing their story on #thismorning
— Lianne Edwards (@squareshapedbox) March 31, 2017
#ThisMorning what an amazing family! Crying my eyes out! Perfect wedding day for them! ❤️
— Sammie (@Vodkaprincess12) March 31, 2017
#thismorning this is beautiful but making me cry such a lovely family
— Miss Pullen (@MISSPULL) March 31, 2017
What a beautiful family #ThisMorning ❤️
— Miss Francis (@PuReViBeZ) March 31, 2017
They certainly are a lovely family!