Pueblo West mom documents son’s journey to spread awareness and help others understand his disorder; gains nearly 1 million followers

PUEBLO WEST, Colo. (KRDO) - Raedyn Gallardo is just like every other toddler. He slides down slides, climbs, and vocalizes when he needs his mom's attention.

But his everyday life is very different from a typical two-year-old. 

As Raedyn plays inside his home, a green tube follows him around and supplies oxygen to his lungs because he can't breathe on his own.

 "Eating is really hard, just with some different things that are going on inside of his organs," said Natasha Kent, Raedyn's mom.

Raedyn was born with a rare genetic disorder called Pfieffer Syndrome. It prevents the skull from growing normally and affects the shape of his head and face, sometimes causing increased pressure around the brain.

"He has multiple appointments during the week that we travel back and forth to Denver just to get basic care for him," said Kent.

Since Raedyn was born, his mom has documented his journey through TikTok. She has posted many doctor visit updates on the social media app, reaching nearly 1 million people. She's hoping more people will become more accepting of people like her son who may look different.

"Now my son looks very different and I see the stares and hear the comments when we're out in public. I see how it affects families like mine now. It's something that I strive to preach about every single day and hopefully teach our new generations on how to accept kiddos that look different," said Kent.

Despite the comments, Kent says the positives outweigh the negatives.

"A woman came up to us. She had literal tears coming down her face, she's like, I teach my kids about him and that's what keeps me going," said Kent.