Friday, June 24, 2011

If money were no object...and such.

It's more FASD and special needs for today. Skip it if you'd like.

The thing about FASDers is they can be successful when their environment is set up for success. Provide the necessary support and they function quite well most of the time. This is a double edged sword. Because when it looks like these kids are doing just fine people get hesitant to pay for the services that make the success a possibility. It's the functional equivalent of saying to a wheelchair bound kid, "You get around just fine, why do you need that dumb wheelchair anyway." Well, it's pretty obvious the kid has mobility because of the wheelchair. You take away the wheelchair, you lose mobility. But somehow the same logic doesn't apply when the supports look like a Occupational therapy, speech therapy, picture schedules, sensory diet, and therapeutic parenting techniques.

So the challenge for me is to build in the right supports to help our little girl succeed without her appearing so functional that the schools won't pay for services and develop an IEP (individualized educational plan). She needs support, and early intervention is our best bet to capitalize on brain plasticity. It will require a sophisticated ability to work the system. This is a particular specialty of mine. It's how I got through college with great grades and little effort. Seriously - if there is a rule to be bent or twisted to my advantage then I will find it. It's funny that this quirk of mine could serve my daughter well.

Anyway, if I had my druthers these are the interventions I would use.

I would have Abby continue with OT, and add in speech therapy at Children's. I'd also have her receive OT and speech at preschool. Plus, she might need a para just to keep her safe, and the kids around her safe. Also, I'm interested in pursuing NeuroReorganization type therapy with Anna Buck and then top it off with iLs. Plus, of course, we need some therapeutic parenting tools for ODD type behaviors. Also, I'd like to go to the Children's carseat clinic for an Abby-proof carseat. And I think we need better locks/alarms on our doors. Plus, Northglenn's police department can give me an Abby tracking device. (You can, indeed, microchip your kids) I'm not quite sure what she will need in an IEP, but you can bet that I'll figure it out.

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