The other Hero of the story

 Katie's success in high school was down to a LOT of therapy, and this amazing lady.  Claudia Powers was Katie's SpEd case manager and handled everything to do with her IEP.  

Her room was a bastion of calm in the chaos for Katie, who was allowed to go there at almost any time she needed, to calm herself and get her body regulated again when she started to get overwhelmed.  Claudia advocated for Katie's every need and made my job as the parent so much easier in those final years.  Thank you so much Claudia!  I hope you're enjoying your well earned retirement!

Awkward Middle School Years

  

NETS day treatment 

It has been years since I've updated anything about our journey, and the story feels unfinished.  Things have turned out much better than anyone probably would have expected from reading the story so far. 

Hayes Elementary was not quite the answer to our prayers that I had initially hoped it would be.  A poor staffing match led to some trauma Kate still struggles with today.

Unfortunately, the change to Vyvanse was a HUGE mistake. Vyvanse is a derivative of Adderall, which had been so bad for her in the beginning.  It caused behavior I couldn't imagine in my sweet baby girl, and thus a very tough year. Thank you Dr PJ Johnson for finally coming into our lives and getting us on the right track!

Middle School is never easy for the best of us, but it was especially tough for Katie.  If I am completely honest, based purely on academics, she should probably have failed the 7th grade.  But that would have devasted her, and no one doubted she had the aptitude to continue, she just couldn't regulate her emotions.  This led to a full year spent in a Day Treatment program in Mounds View, through NYFS.

With the help of a lot of therapy, we looked forward to a fresh start as she entered Irondale High School as a freshman in 2019. 

13th Birthday party