Mother finally gets to dance with disabled son on wedding day

Jo Atrill never thought it would be possible to dance with her 13-year-old son.

As Alex Dieterle has severe cerebral palsy, standing upright is a challenge.

People afflicted with cerebral palsy may exhibit symptoms like poor coordination, stiff muscles and tremors. In some cases, individuals may have problems with their vision and speech. 

But her then-fiancee (now husband) Martin Atrill, made sure his bride got the best surprise of her life on their wedding day in February.

Mr Atrill had secretly designed and constructed a special harness to support Alex's body, so that the teen could dance with his mother.

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As the pair slow-danced to Coldplay's "Yellow", a song which Mrs Atrill had sung to Alex since he was a baby, that there was not a dry eye in the room.

"At one point when we were looking around the room the whole room had just broken down and we realised that maybe I had nailed the wedding at that point," the groom told broadcaster ITV West Country.

Ever since Jamie Mathias, the couple's wedding singer, posted a video on Feb 12, it has been viewed around 49,000 times.

Mrs Atrill told ITV West Country that there were many times in the last five years she didn't think Alex would be present during her wedding day.

"To be there, at my wedding, to have a new family to be part of and to be able to do something I had never even contemplated," she said. 

"I would say it was the best moment of my life ever."

debwong@sph.com.sg