Parenthood comes with both joys and frustrations. Holding your newborn and watching as they take leaps in development over the months and years bring love and happiness. The crayon artwork on the walls, however, can bring its own set of obstacles. That’s how life started out for the Hickman family.

When Albert Hickman was born, parents Rich and Emily were overjoyed. They watched their son hit milestones each month and grow into an active two-year-old boy. Yet as Albert continued growing, they began noticing his troubles self-regulating. Albert struggled with following directions and sitting still, but above all, he struggled with communication. A two-year-old not being able to communicate his wants and needs? You can imagine how that led to inevitable outbursts of frustration. Seeking advice from their pediatrician and other resources, Albert was diagnosed with autism at 26 months old.

“Autism is an encompassing diagnosis, but every child is unique,” explains Rich. “The Children’s Institute understands this very well.” Albert began early intervention services, including occupational and speech therapies, to tackle his speech delay and improve his ability to communicate. Yet Rich and Emily found Albert’s progress slow and continually felt the therapists they were seeing were not a good fit for their family. “We’ve probably had ten, twelve occupational therapists, probably the same amount of speech therapists,” Rich laments. Yet when they found therapies at The Children’s Institute, Albert and his therapists quickly built rapport that allowed Albert to shine. “I didn’t expect both Albert and the team to gel so quickly and then from there on, it’s just been growth like crazy.” After two years of occupational and speech therapies, Rich and Emily have seen amazing progress.

Where Albert was unable to sit for more than a few seconds at a time, he is now able to attend to tasks and sit for more than ten minutes at a time, multiple times a day because he has learned techniques to regulate himself through motion and sensory seeking techniques. These days, you can find Albert exploring outside and gaining independence. He rides a bike, is learning to swim, and is fascinated by insects – even the ant farm he keeps inside! He loves books, particularly Curious George, his dog, Gus, and he is an active part of his family, with a protective-older-brother relationship with his brother, Ollie.

“We now have hope for Albert to build positive relationships and live his best life,” Rich explains. “Outpatient therapies at The Children’s Institute made such a difference in the life of our family and led us to enroll Albert in The Day School at The Children’s Institute.”

Now, when Albert gets up for school, he’s excited and ready to go. He’s motivated and receives support from not only his teachers at The Day School, but also the in-school therapists, along with his outpatient therapists for continued occupational and speech therapies. “Everyone at The Children’s Institute is wonderful. They see me as the expert in my child, and they see Albert as a boy with great potential.”

You can read more about Albert and support amazing kids like him at AmazingKids.org/Meet-Albert.

Sponsored content is created and paid for by the marketer.