Corey\'s Story~*

Our son Corey (now 12 years old) was diagnosed with mild to moderate autism spectrum disorder in December of 2001. In 2002, my husband and I, started ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis). Every now and then I think about the days when my son was a preschooler. Those were the toughest times for us. And with the advice from caring government professionals we enrolled him into daycare and speech therapy. Then on through his amazing progression, Corey goes to a regular school, called Federal Public, in an "Alpha" classroom one on one teaching with a wonderful teacher named, Cindy Sheldon. Corey enjoys school and really tries hard to learn. It is through our ABA program that our son has learned how to learn and he is a much happier boy because of it. Not only has he maintained the items and concepts learned, he is being taught to use them in more complex language situations. His spontaneous language has increased significantly and he is becoming more conversational all of the time. There are times when his teacher has to tell him to spend more time working, rather than visiting with his classmates and running off to the elevator, principal\'s office etc..quite funny!   (I love it!).
With very little progress from the time of the diagnosis, Corey only said a few words using quite often repetitive speech known as, echolalia. He wouldn\'t look at us when we called for him. No eye contact whatsoever. A lot of screaming was done in our home, we were learning to understand and deal with this disorder. Since we started ABA, Corey has made unbelievable progress. For example, he can ask for anything he wants using "I want..." He understands simple commands such as "give me..." "turn on/off the..." "open/close the..." etc. Which now has excelled to full sentences in conversation. He is excelling in some areas of development and is beyond his age level such as blocks and matching (problem solving). He knows all the letters of the alphabet and knows the numbers 1-999 out of sequence and knows how to write it down on paper..and reading!...well don\'t let me get started on that!   He once memorized 68 license plate numbers and typed in out on the computer and now has memorized over 40 phone numbers including his home number, nanny\'s and yup! Crime stoppers! Lol Unbelievable!
Corey regularly participates to his best ability along with the other children. He has reached a point where I can reason with him and this makes life easier all the way around. He also has reached a point where he has started to learn incidentally which is another one of our goals. His play skills have come a long way and he has structured play dates with classroom buddies and family. He really has learned much more than I can mention here and continues to make good progress. Because of the complexity of the program, we continue to need the support and teaching from professional consultants specific to the field of autism and therapy. I like this program because it is broken down into simple manageable components for the child to learn. Our consultant has left us with a detailed curriculum and we now are on the right path for giving our son the tools he needs to be his best. I remember the feeling of helplessness and not knowing what to do, so overwhelming! If I had known then what I know now!
Did I mention that Corey can spell and print his first and last name!? Yup! He also knows many colors and can spontaneously label objects. He can also label many body parts. Most importantly he is much more aware of his surroundings and plays very nicely with his brother(most of the time!)and often asking for kisses, hugs and tickles. Just 2 years ago he would have never allowed his brother to do this!!
Corey has a passion for music, he learned to sing before ever speaking. He loves all kinds of music, anyone from; Shania, Faith Hill, Black Eyed Peas to Mariah Carey, Gwen Stefani and more. He can learn a song so quickly. Astonishing!
If somebody rings the door bell or enters the house, he\'s usually the first one there to greet them saying "hey, how\'s it going?."
It was an easy decision to start the ABA/DTT program. The study suggested that there was a 47% chance of recovery from autism if ABA/DTT programming took place at an early age (2-4 years), and 40 hours per week of intensive therapy. Early intervention is the key.
I urge all parents not to assume that the best treatment is being given to your child with autism. Educate yourself on various treatments and check their validity for effectiveness. Submerge yourself in learning how to teach your child. It is you and your child that will ultimately be affected by the treatment and therapy that you choose for your young child. Perhaps this sounds firm, but when I think about where my son was headed with recommended programming, I know that he would never be where he is today. There is hope, but do not wait for the child to get better on his/her own. It is a fact that early intensive intervention is vital to the future outcome of the child with autism. ABA/DTT is about bringing a child with autism to their very best potential, whatever that may be. Our children will only rise to the expectations that we hold for them. People with autism can do so well, it is up to us to find the tools in order to effectively teach them.
We recognize not every family is able to make the financial and lifestyle commitment that’s required. This is a decision each family has to make themselves. Hoping this has given you and yours a general idea how beneficial this program has been to Corey and our family.