A CHIPPENHAM family say their lives will never be the same after their baby son was diagnosed with a condition that has left him paralysed on his right side.

Dion and Leah Alday's ten-month-old son Lukas was diagnosed with hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy, in December.

The condition was caused by a small bleed in the left side of his brain, which doctor's believe could have happened while he was in the womb, or during birth or shortly after delivery.

The effects are similar to a mild stroke and have paralysed Lukas' right side, leaving his right arm and leg useless.

His parents had no idea there was anything wrong with him until the diagnosis, and Mr Alday, 33, said the family was still reeling from the news.

Mr Alday, who works for Zurich Financial Services, in Cheltenham, is now training for the 26-mile London Marathon in April to raise awareness about the condition, which affects one in 1,000 people.

"We were very, very shocked because you assume that you have a healthy child, but when they told us what it was and we had looked at the website for the condition, we knew our lives were never going to be the same again," Mr Alday said.

"We have tried to be positive about what has happened. You can either bury your head in the sand and pretend it's not happening or accept it and get on with your lives."

Mr Alday, of Westbrook Close, said the family first became concerned about Lukas when they noticed his left side was more active than his right.

He said if he passed Lukas a toy to his right, the baby would take it with his left hand.

The Aldays, who also have a three-and-a-half-year-old son, Kieran, said the hardest part of the diagnosis was not knowing to what extent Lukas is disabled.

The doctors have told the family it is impossible to determine at the moment because of his age.

They have said people with the condition can develop learning difficulties, behavioural problems, epilepsy and vision and hearing problems.

Mr Alday said: "He might be able to function 99 per cent normally or only 50 per cent.

"A lot of hemiplegiacs end up having limps. It could be very mild or quite severe.

"Lukas could go to a mainstream school or he might need to go to a special needs school.

"At the moment the indications are quite good, but it's the fear of not knowing and how it might affect us as a family.

"We are doing all we can, but don't really know if he will be hampered by the condition in the future."

He said that at the moment Lukas is visiting the physiotherapist once a month, who exercises his right leg and arm to keep the muscles strong and the joints moving.

Mr Alday said he and his wife also stretch Lukas' limbs every day, while playing with their son or while he is watching his favourite TV show, The Tweenies.

The family also takes him for regular appointments with an occupational therapist who keeps a close eye on his progress.

Mr Alday will be running the marathon to raise money for Hemi-help, a charity, which provides information, advice and support for the parents of children suffering from hemiplegia.

"I wanted to run for the charity because when I told people what was wrong with Lukas they said they had never heard of hemiplegia," he said.

"And neither had we until Lukas was diagnosed.

"This is a charity I'm sure that will give us and others lots of support in the years to come.

"It already means a great to us now at the present time."