Little Evalyn was just five months old when she received a diagnosis which devastated her parents.
Doctors found that she had a rare Brain Migration Disorder called Pachygyria, which has no known cure.
Born "stiff as a board", she suffers from severe developmental delay, epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy, and feeding and swallowing difficulties as a result of her condition.
Now two years old, Nottinghamshire native Evalyn – known as Evie – can’t walk or even sit up by herself.
It’s for that reason that her swimming prowess has stunned her doctors.
Incredibly, the little girl managed her first swim unaided at just 18 months, and she’s continuing to make progress in the water.
Her mum and dad Michelle and Jonathan Carr made the discovery after doctors recommended Evie start physiotherapy and hydrotherapy to help her development.
Hydrotherapy is a water-based physiotherapy which can increase motor coordination and increase flexibility and muscle strength.
“Evie had always loved water,” mum Michelle told the Daily Mail.
“She loved having baths and showers. We could see it gave her a sense of freedom. Her arms and legs seemed to be given a new lease of life whilst in water.”
Michelle and Jonathan enrolled Evie at Water Babies, a local swimming class for children. Initially Michelle was anxious, not only about how Evie would get on in the pool, but also about how others would react to her disability.
However, they need not have worried. Within minutes, the benefits to Evie of being in water were clear to see.
“As I got in the pool with her and felt the warm water rise up our bodies, her little body relaxed in my arms,” said Michelle, who brings Evie swimming every week.
“For the first time, her muscles were no longer stiff and she could move her arms and legs purposefully and freely. You could even see the relief in her face. It was magical.”
Fortunately, Michelle’s fears about others’ reactions were also unfounded.
“All the other mums and dads were great and understanding,” she said. “They asked questions about Evie but I was happy to answer them and realised I had nothing to worry about.”
As time went by, Evie’s physical strength grew, and Michelle is in no doubt that her improvement is down to her swimming exploits.
“She started to vocalise more – the exercise in the water strengthened her lungs and she started to make new sounds,” Michelle said.
“She started to prop up on her arms whilst laying on her tummy, which I could see was a direct link to the swimming board work we did in the pool.”
While this is impressive in itself, Michelle’s most memorable moment in the water with Evie was when the tot swam all by herself at 18 months.
“My heart was pounding as she paddled her little arms and legs as fast as she could and swam towards me beaming,” she said.
“I couldn’t believe it. Our little girl who could not sit up, crawl or walk, could swim. All the other mums cheered, it was such an emotional moment. Evie really is our little mermaid.”
While her physical developments are seriously impressive, mum Michelle says that swimming lessons have helped her daughter’s emotional and social development just as much.
“It’s also about Evie being included in a social group where they all had an equal ability and equal opportunities to achieve,” she said.
While swimming lessons are fantastic, Evie will soon be too old for Water Babies. Her parents would love to have a hydrotherapy pool for their girl at home.
But at £13,000 (€16,500), these pools aren’t cheap.
That’s why they’ve set up a GoFundMe page to try and raise the money.
“We’ve got a long way to go, but when we have raised enough money and have the pool up and ready, we’d love for other children in the community like Evie to use it too,” said Michelle.
“We have seen such a great improvement in our daughter that we want other children less fortunate who can’t afford the lessons to benefit in the same way.”
If you’d like to help Evie and her family raise funds, visit https://www.gofundme.com/EvalynSwims.
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