'It's a constant battle': Mother of son with rare genetic condition shares mental health challenges

• Watch: ITV West Country's Sabet Choudhury and Louisa Britton spoke to Carla Alderman about navigating life as a parent-carer

The mother of a boy with a rare genetic condition has said getting the right support for her son "is a constant battle."

Carla Alderman, from Bradley Stoke, has opened up about the challenges of being a parent-carer in her new book, 'Finding Me Again.'

Her son Cameron has Norrie's Disease — he was born blind and started to lose his hearing when he was just three years old.

He is non-verbal and was also diagnosed with autism at the age of five.

Speaking to ITV West Country, Mrs Alderman said she has to constantly fight to get him the support he needs.

"I wouldn't change Cameron for the world, but there have been some really challenging times," she said.

"It's not really the caring side of things - it's the constant battle and fight to get the right funding for him, the right support, accessibility, that sort of thing" she added.

Mrs Alderman has already written a book — 'Cameron's Smile: Raising a Deaf-Blind Child — raising awareness of the condition.

Speaking to ITV West Country, she said her new book focuses on the mental health challenges she has faced and aims to show other parents that "it's okay not to be okay all the time."

She said: "The book is about my mental health journey as a parent-carer, and how it's impacted my physical and mental health because I feel like not many people talk about that side of things.

"Us parents-carers, we don't have a choice, we just have to get on and do it. Obviously, I want Cameron to have the best life possible, but it shouldn't be as hard for us to fight just to have the basic necessities," she added.