You make the difference at Christmas

Candace is having a great day at therapy today. She is enjoying playing with the toys and engaging with her therapists. But she is also keeping a close eye on mum and dad to make sure they are watching too!

This session is being run by Montrose Occupational Therapist, Jessica and Physiotherapist, Yolande. They are focussing on movement and strength goals to help Candace catch up with other kids her age.

Candace is working hard. She’s taking toys out of a box, chasing a ball on the floor and also climbing up a little step! This is great progress. Only a few months ago, Candace would cry during sessions and struggle to even sit up. She’s just approaching her second birthday and has a developmental delay due to seizures as an infant.

“Not long after she was born, she started having little muscle spasms in her arms and leg.” explains mum, Cassie.

“Then one morning she just rolled her eyes to the back of her head and I couldn’t get her attention. We rushed straight to hospital where she had another seizure. We didn’t know what was causing it and we were scared we might lose her. Our pastor came and she had a lot of prayers.” She explains.

Although the seizures have stopped, there has still been no diagnosis of a specific cause and Candace still sees a paediatrician for further investigations.

The family chose to access multidisciplinary services at Montrose.

“Montrose had everything in one place so I only have to go there to get all Candace needs”, says Cassie.

As any parent knows, children develop really quickly at this age and, unfortunately, Candace has needed more support than predicted, meaning their agreed funding package has been spent. The family are unable to access a funding review immediately and were left with the prospect of stopping therapy for several months. This can often happen with very young children. They make progress so quickly that it is difficult to predict exactly when and how much therapy they will require. We also know that the right therapy at the right time can make a huge difference!

Thanks to the generosity of those who donate to Montrose, we were able to step in and provide ongoing therapy at no cost to the family while they work towards a review.

This means the great progress that Candace has worked so hard to achieve can continue.

“She’s come a long way this year and made a lot of progress.” explains Cassie.

“When we first came, she couldn’t sit or self-feed. But, just last week, she sat up by herself in the shopping trolley and she is starting to feed herself as well”, she says.

Next on the goal list for Candace is therapy support as she learns to walk as well as continuing to learn about play and using toys to develop her fine motor skills.