Shaughnessy Story
We are a family of five, and we have been blessed with three beautiful and amazing daughters. Emma is our oldest and is currently four. She was 18 months old when our identical twins, Avery and Riley, were born. The twins turned three this past June, and it has been a whirlwind ride since the day they graced us with their presence!
When the twins were about five months old, we realized they were having significant problems moving. Avery’s entire body was stiff and not allowing her to move naturally as a baby should, and Riley’s spine had developed a curve based on how she had been positioned in mommy’s tummy for so long. The twins started physical therapy at 5 months of age and for the next year, we were so focused on the kid’s physical development that we did not spend time questioning why their verbal skills were slow to develop. We were always told, “twins can often develop slower.” However, at 15 months old we started with speech therapy for Avery and Riley. We noticed very little progress in 10 months of sessions, and at this same time we noticed the girls started becoming increasingly frustrated with their inability to communicate. They knew what they wanted but had no way of telling us. Their frustration led to them harming themselves by banging their heads against the floor or a hard surface, and it truly was a guessing game trying to predict or figure out what they wanted before they would breakdown. It became a very difficult time in our household because we did not have a true understanding as to what was causing the girls to act this way. When the girls turned two, we sought some additional help for Riley and after some testing, she placed on the Autism Spectrum in September of 2018. Hearing the initial diagnosis, we were crushed as parents and this absolutely rocked our world. No parent ever wants to hear that their kid is different or that their kid will be faced with additional struggles in their life. The situation became increasingly difficult as we decided to have Avery tested as well, and in October of 2018 she too was diagnosed as autistic. After receiving this news, it would have been easy to grieve and feel sorry for ourselves, but we knew that was not what was going to help our girls through their fight. There is a physiological reaction that occurs when someone perceives a threat; this is more commonly referred to as the “Fight or Flight” response. At this point we knew; it was time to fight!
Upon receiving the diagnosis that both of our girls were on the autism spectrum, we immediately began researching next steps and realized that our girls would benefit the most if we could get them into an Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) Therapy program supplemented with Speech and Occupational therapy as well. Every program we found was either a “half-day” program or one that consisted of a couple “sessions” throughout the week. Well for two parents who work full time and have a third child who still needs to be provided for, none of these programs were realistic options. We began having more open conversations with our family about the struggles we were facing, and one family member recommended that we reach out to Jennifer Friesen, the VP of Programs and Services, at Easterseals of North Texas. After meeting with Jennifer and touring the Easterseals facility in Carrolton, TX, we found a facility that was not only able to meet all our needs, but they were willing to work with us to do it! Avery and Riley started at Easterseals on November 5, 2018 receiving ABA, Speech, and Occupational Therapy services. The team of therapists at ESNT coordinated their individual goals and sessions to allow the girls to reach a greater growth potential. We have seen amazing growth in both girls, including learning some basic verbal communication as well as learning how to work through their frustrations when they are not able to communicate. We will always remember March 16th, 2019, when at 2 years and 9 months old, Avery said “Momma” for the first time! As a 3-year-old, Riley is now playing with her sisters and will run up and give her grandparents hugs, whereas before she would completely seclude herself from others. These small victories will always keep us fighting for our kids’ futures!
The Easterseals staff has been a huge blessing to our family. They have taught us how to connect and communicate with our daughters, and we fully believe we would not have seen the progress we have seen if it wasn’t for the incredible staff and program at Easterseals. The reason that we have decided to host a charity fundraiser event with all proceeds going to Easterseals North Texas is that we understand that the therapies our daughters receive have costs. We also know that there are families out there who are unable to fully cover these costs. If we can help even one family have a joyous experience like hearing their child speak for the first time, then this event will have been a success. Our ability to provide Easterseals with additional funding will in turn allow them to reach out to more families and children in need. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your involvement in this charity fundraiser, and we hope that with your assistance this event will be successful for many years to come.
Sincerely,
Ryan and Amy Shaughnessy