Callum Jones
A mother has recalled the heartbreaking moment she discovered her newborn had a rare disorder that means she can't close her eyes or even smile.
Victoria LaBrie knew something wasn't quite right before giving birth to little Hazel in December 2024.
"Her eyes were wide open on an ultrasound and we would always just talk about how cute it was," Victoria recalled to Fox News. "Like, wow, who gets to see that? Not many people. But then it happened again. And it's like, wow, that's lucky.
"So then when she was born and her eyes were wide open then I was like, something is not right."
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It was at 20 weeks pregnant when doctors looked into the issues regarding her pregnancy, as the mother-of-five explained: "They thought her brain had fused together. It was actually suggested or more so kind of like, here's grief packets type of thing.
"What are you wanting to do? And it took a lot of testing to get to the point where we found out that that wasn't the issue."
After Hazel was born, it was revealed the newborn had Moebius syndrome - a rare and incurable disorder that causes facial paralysis and the inability to blink whatsoever.
Speaking of the moment she heard her daughter's diagnosis, Victoria told Inside Edition: "As soon as they handed her to me and I saw her eyes opened, I knew something wasn't right.
"It took about two weeks of testing, MRIs, EMGs, all of the above to find out it was Moebius syndrome."
The disorder happens when cranial nerves don’t develop properly during pregnancy, with their being an estimated two to 20 cases per one million births, according to the Moebius Syndrome Foundation.
While Victoria has been through so much heartache in recent times, she is pledging to help use her experience to help others and is documenting her story on TikTok.
"She is lifting hearts. People are saying that I didn't know I needed to be grateful for blinking," the mother told Fox News.
"Families everywhere are going to know who Hazel is and I can rest easy knowing that if we're loud and proud about what she has going on that these families are talking about it to their children."
Victoria's mother has set up a GoFundMe page in recent months in a bid to help her find a home with her 'five special needs kids'.