The Teen Who Dies If He Falls Asleep

A TEENAGER who suffers from an extremely rare condition means if he falls asleep unassisted - he dies.Liam Derbyshire was born with Ondine’s Curse, officially known as Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome, which causes respiratory arrest due to a patient’s lungs not functioning when they are asleep. The condition, which affects less than 1500 worldwide, means the 17-year-old has to be plugged into a life support machine and watched by a carer every night to keep him alive. Doctors gave Liam just six weeks to live after birth, but later this year the young man from Gosport, South Hampshire, is turning 18 and has truly defied all odds.

Videographer / director: Kashfi Halford, Adam Prosser
Producer: Danny Baggott, Ruby Coote, Nick Johnson
Editor: Sonia Estal

For more of the amazing side of life:

[Crim_Zen]

A friend of mine recently died from this. She had been battling it for over 30 years.

[earlthegamer]

The fact that he survived this long for this condition specifically is absolutely phenomenal for him.

[teaganb]

If anyone bully’s him... just so you know I’m COMING FOR YOU

[lilie]

I love his mom
Doctor: He wont survive for more than 6 weeks
Mom: Game on >:)

[pikyokewong]

I thought he had to stay awake all the time

[hannahridgeway]

Hurts my heart to imagine how he'll cope when his mother and father pass away, hopefully his close family will stand up and be prepared to keep him alive x

[Screwsandrods]

He is Very lucky to have very caring, supportive parents who love and take good care of him! 🙏

[nicolewright]

Brave young man . Wish I could take it all away from him . God bless him take care buddie you are a strong young man 💙

[sefia]

Mom: "18 years since we started this journey, you see."
Dad: "yeah I don't regret any day of it."
MY TEARS SUDDENLY FELL OFF😭 WHAT A GREAT PARENTS

[trashgtaplayer]

What happens if the power goes out? Not a joke, a legitimate concern

[Boki]

I wish him the best of luck with his health, he just deserves better life.

[The_DCR]

Let’s hope he’s still ok with coronavirus and all. Best of luck to him. What a legend.

[KaciHazaCoolPhone]

100/10 best parents ever! Bless them all!

[joethegreat]

I love the way he talks, a soft voice that it penetrate the Heart!

[Tetodash]

This is horrifying. I can’t imagine having to worry about this.

[andygirl]

I love the unconditional Love the parents have for their son and the love the son has for his parents, that close bond is so incredibly sweet♡

[さおり-iu]

These are wonderful loving families including the understanding nephews we got here. God bless them

[_MC]

This is why we need great healthcare
So people as incredible as Liam get the best possible chance

[racquelmitra]

I use to hate sleeping but after I watched this I cherished the fact that I could sleep without the thought of well just dying.. don't be ungrateful for what you have just be happy for what you have. Even if you have if you have a life threatening disease <3

[JasonGafar]

I'm so so so so happy he's so fortunate to have these wonderful parents. His parents deeply love and care for him and it melts my heart. I wish him well on his journey.