"When one door of happiness closes, another opens;
but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us."
Helen Keller

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Team Brycen 2011


Only 11 more days until Iowa Walk Now for Autism Speaks!!  Team Brycen 2011 has done a phenomenal job of fundraising again this year!  Our team has raised almost $4500 to date with more that has been mailed in over this last week.  We have a ton of walkers signed up and are once again planning a picnic lunch afterwards to celebrate another successful year.  Above you can see what our team shirts will look like this year!  Of course, we incorporated the train theme again to celebrate Brycen's passion for trains. 

Thanks to everybody who has pledged to walk on June 11, as well as to everybody who has donated over the last several months.  We appreciate all of the support! 
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1 comment:

  1. AnonymousJune 4, 2011 at 7:35 PM

    Cameron's crusaders is cheering Team Brycen on! Thanks for putting this out there as it is great to get the word out. Cameron's story sounds a lot like Brycen's. It would be great to meet you. I'll look out for you in the AWESOME yellow train shirts. Good luck to you all.

    Cody (Cameron's daddy)

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Autism and Our Family

"Autism"----It's one word that can change the life of a child and family in so many ways. Autism Spectrum Disorders are being diagnosed at a rate of 1 in 68 children currently. If you do not already know someone that has been diagnosed, the statistics say it won't be long before you do.

Our son developed typically until around the time he turned 2 years old. We heard words...we saw him play with other kids...we watched as he played with his toys appropriately...we made eye contact with him...overall we understood his wants and needs. In a matter of a few months, that was all taken away from him. He began lining up toys, lost all of his words and signs except for one word "ball", ignored other kids, could not sleep through the night, lost eye contact and the ability to follow directions, and he had no way of letting us know what he wanted or how he felt. It was heartbreaking to see something happening to our child that we couldn't stop!

Brycen began receiving home therapy 1-2 times per month for about 6 months before we realized it wasn't just developmental delays. We knew it was Autism...we just didn't want to say it outloud to anyone. He was officially diagnosed with Autism (classic form and regressive), as well as Mental Retardation in August 2009 by the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

We continue to learn as we make our way through this journey with Brycen and we will continue to share this journey with you on this blog! The blog has been a great therapy for us to be able to vent our frustrations and struggles with accepting that we have a child with special needs, while sharing how blessed we are to have a child teach us what life truly means. It has also been a great way to inform others of his progress and changes over the last couple of years.

Thank you for your support of Brycen and our family! We hope you are able to learn something through this blog no matter if you are a parent of a child with special needs or a neurotypical child, a teacher or therapist, a family member, or just someone that is interested in the journey that a family goes on as they learn their child is battling a life-long disorder.