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Welcome to David's web
site! David is a happy and sweet almost 5 year-old who loves to be tickled and hugged.
He also has a rare chromosome disorder called Deletion 18q-
Syndrome.
Diagnosed in only 450 known people worldwide, this syndrome causes David to have low muscle tone and a growth hormone deficiency, a hormone that David receives by injection 6 days a week, and unless an alternative method is found, he will continue to receive for the rest of his life. The growth hormone helps him to grow, but more importantly, it maintains the Myelin coating on the brain that allows his brain signals to travel & reach their destinations.
David is also autistic.
We invite you to take some time
to view all the resources we have made available here at
David's site. We've compiled a wealth of resources to
help others better understand both Autism as well as Deletion
18q- Syndrome. We offer the very real hope that living
with the challenges that we face every day can be a joyful, as
well learning experience. We are here to share our
experiences, strength and hope with others.
For all of you who have
supported David over the years, we thank you. For those of you
just starting your journey, we welcome you with open arms.
David’s Videos on YouTube™
NEW UPDATE-4-1-08
David is now almost 9 years old! It is unreal as to how much time has gone by. I wanted to update everyone on his journey as we all learn so much from each other’s stories!
Good day all!
We wanted to share more of David’s journey with you and what we have implemented that has helped so very much. Two years ago we began Mild Hyper Baric Oxygen Therapy through our DAN Doctor with David. David’s first 3 hours of treatment yielded the first word we had heard in years! After his 2nd 1 ½ hour treatment was just about finished, he looked up at the zipper, pointed to the porthole and said “out”! Music to my ears! From this day on his vocabulary continued to grow. A bit of history on David’s speech. He had 75+ words and phrases by the age of 18 months. His speech disappeared at 2 years old when autism joined his world.
He regained his speech 3 times during the next 3 years, but it would only stay for a week or 24 hours. This time is stayed! We believe the mHBOT treatments are the reason his speech stayed & the hard work David and his speech therapists have put in. Some autistic children have a virus in the brain that causes swelling in the speech center of the brain. Even the smallest bit of inflammation can cause loss of speech. Viruses cannot survive pure oxygen; the mHBOT gave him pure oxygen which we believed killed the virus. He works hard on his clarity of speech, but is able to communicate his wants & needs. My favorite sentence is “I love you Mom”.
David has a rare chromosome disorder, (Deletion 18q- Syndrome), which lends him low muscle tone and growth hormone deficiency. He was never supposed to walk, but we never told him! He walked at the age of 3 years and now runs faster than mom & dad. He has overcome his low muscle tone almost completely through mHBOT & physical therapy. His therapist is amazing and believes in him which allows him to gain the confidence it needs to climb this mountain.
David is different when it comes to growth hormone. His pituitary gland manufactures growth hormone, but for some unknown reason his body wasn’t absorbing it. He didn’t make the grow charts until he was almost 6 years old! Within 3 months of starting mHBOT, David grew 3 inches and gained enough weight to not only put him on the growth chart, but also average in height and weight!
David attends an amazing school, Celebrate the Children that by God’s grace is only 20 minutes from our home. They use Dr. Greenspan’s DIR approach which is respectful, & loving. We always knew David was reading and comprehending, although most though we were a bit crazy. Now that David is communicating he has shown everyone that he comprehends what he reads. He is known as the Academic Star Pupil in his school.
When they first introduced math skill it was apparent he had been studying secretly! He tends to shy away from anything that is hard like writing, but as soon as he knows he can do it & the celebrations that follow each success no matter how small are his reward, he wants to work harder! So Son Rise! David now loves music. We hear him either humming or singing quite often. He is also enjoying art, drama, yoga & handwriting. He is smart, witty, smooth, and has an amazing sense of humor. For us it brings joy that he loves going to school. After 4 years we have never had a day where he refused to go, unless he wasn’t feeling well.
mHBOT has also proved a tremendous asset for David’s health. He no longer gets pneumonia 3-4 times a year; in fact he hasn’t had it in 2 years! His eczema is completely gone. His bee sting allergy has gone from a 6 to a 1 on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the most severe. The dark circles under his eyes have almost completely disappeared. His bowel movements are solid and digested. His growing at a healthy steady rate and sleeping through each night! His appetite is fantastic and he loves healthy foods. The newest addition to his diet is raw red, yellow & orange peppers.
David’s mental clarity is wonderful. He is a wonder at trouble shooting, cause and effect, and getting his way! His memory is amazing. He remembers where he left things a week ago sometimes longer. He remembers people too. Has even shown shyness to strangers. In school they sometimes use a white board to tell David what to do next. His response is immediate. When home where it is quiet we don’t need a white board.
David will begin learning Facilitated Communication within the next couple of months. He has already shown us he can do it and we are thrilled he uses his language with it!
David has begun to flourish socially with his peers. A tickle fest with Gaby. Sharing lunch with Gaby. Holding hands and listening to music with Tommy. Are just a few recent instances. Joining his brother and brother’s friends for video game fun. And a constant….sitting down with all of us for dinner!
Thank you all for allowing us to share this most amazing journey!
