John's Story
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Prognosis: Positive Outlook
Imagine what it would be like to struggle with keeping your balance, dressing yourself, visually focusing on a few printed words, verbally expressing yourself to others -- every single day of your life. Now imagine you're a little boy who faces these struggles while attending grade school and a weekly routine of tiring therapy sessions. Would you have much to smile about? Probably not, but Jared Jackson is that boy, and he smiles a lot. He's determined that cerebral palsy and dyspraxia -- the diagnostic realities of his life -- won't get in his way of living that life to the fullest.
And fortunately, this happy, sociable, nine-year-old boy gets by with a little help from a "village" of support: loving parents, twin sister Kaela, family friends, his pediatrician Dr. Shelly Senders, the Solon City Schools and the dedicated professionals at Achievement Centers for Children who work to develop his physical and speech abilities to help him ultimately lead an independent life. United Way plays a role in this, supporting a rehabilitation services program that's having an "amazing" impact on Jared's life, according to his mom, Mozelle Jackson.
Facing new challenges
Mozelle and her husband Mike know what it's like to raise a child with special needs and they don't shrink from the role. "Jared is a great kid with a ton of personality," says Mozelle. "He's very social, and hard-working too. He likes new challenges."
Cerebral palsy isn't a challenge anyone would willingly ask for. This chronic disorder impairs control of the body's movements. It may be congenital or acquired after birth, and is caused by defective development of or injury to motor areas in the brain, disrupting the brain's ability to control movement and posture. Cerebral palsy cannot be cured at present, but with proper therapy and medical care, many individuals with this disorder can enjoy productive lives.
Making progress
"It's incredible--his speech has gotten much better." That's how Mozelle describes Jared's progress since he entered Achievement Centers' program of speech and occupational therapy in 2005. "When he started speech therapy at the Achievement Centers last fall, he could only speak in basic phrases of one or two words," says Mozelle. "Now he can express himself in sentences of three to four words."
"This is so important, because Jared can understand everything that's communicated to him, but the physical symptoms of cerebral palsy and dyspraxia make it extremely difficult to express himself verbally," adds Mozelle. "As Jared has begun putting these sentences together, the best one is, 'Mommy (or Daddy), I love you!' This means everything to hear our child say those words."
Learning the right way to speak
"Jared is a sweet kid with a great laugh," says Steve McDermott, department head for Speech Therapy at the Achievement Centers' Highland Hills facility. "We work with him in weekly sessions, addressing his dyspraxia of speech, a disorder that affects Jared's ability to sequence the movements of his lips, tongue and jaw for the complex task of producing words. Through various speech therapy techniques, Jared learns to strengthen his jaw, tongue, cheek and lip muscles, along with breath support and breath control. McDermott adds, "Jared enjoys his sessions here at the Achievement Centers and loves to work -- he's willing to stay late to practice. Jared's parents have also been great partners in working on his speech at home."
Occupational therapy isn't just for adults
"Jared is a very happy boy, pleasant and hard-working," says Julie DeBlasi, an occupational therapist at the Achievement Centers. "He talks to his family and friends about his therapy sessions with a lot of anticipation during the week." Julie has worked with Jared since the beginning of this year, helping him to develop strength in his hands and upper body with the goal of increasing his ability to do everyday tasks most of us take for granted, such as dressing, undressing and going to the bathroom unassisted. But performing these tasks without assistance will give Jared a much greater sense of independence and improve his self-image and quality of life immeasurably.
What lies ahead in Jared's future? "Continued progress and happiness," says Mozelle. "With the Achievement Centers for Children, we have a partner in Jared's progress. With his mindset and happy, determined approach, he's going to do great things." Imagine.
If you need help, call United Way's 211/First Call For Help at 2-1-1 or 216-436-2000, or visit uws.org/fcfh.
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