I’ve read about intensive therapy centers in the Hope for HIE groups since Neala was a baby (she’s now 9 years old). It was so expensive and far away. Not to mention the fact that Neala could not even stand to ride in the car, let alone tolerate a cross-country flight.
Years later, when we were financially able to sign up for an intensive in 2020, the pandemic hit and shut everything down. We finally started an intensive this week at a new location near me, and it is so different from any other therapy experience we have had. She is so much more mature and so am I.
I’ll be honest. I’ve always been hoping for a miracle cure with every new therapy we try. This time though, I’m just proud to watch her work. I’m so grateful that she’s old enough to understand what’s being asked of her.
She has her own goals, she tells jokes to the therapists. We are surrounded by crying babies and screaming toddlers and those days are so painful for me to remember. How desperately I pushed and fought and tried.
I feel so much more at peace with whatever happens here.
Today she was laughing at feeding therapy and that was such a healing moment for me. Feeding has always been so fraught.
I just want parents of younger kids to know that there’s time.
We want to seize every moment of growth and development and push push push therapy when they’re little… but there’s life beyond the early years.
…There is wonderful bonding and learning still happening when your kid gets older, too.
I acknowledge the privileges I have here. My kid is more mild/moderately affected, and we are privileged to live close to this therapy center, and can afford to experience this.
I know not everyone’s journey will look like this.
But if you’re feeling like Early Intervention is the deadline for progress, or kindergarten, or some other arbitrary age or stage, that’s just not true.
We keep learning.
Our kids keep learning.
There’s hope in the journey even for older kids.
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