So we felt very alone as we tried to figure out what was going on. For the first year of Jake’s life we frequently felt alarmed as we noticed non-typical behaviors and responses, but they were subtle, and as he was such a smiley, happy and alert child, we were told not to worry. 

Then we noticed that our child wasn’t learning properly. He was late with walking and talking. He never crawled. We had done the alternative method of potty training from birth so he skipped crawling and instead bounced around on his bottom. I noticed that he never signed back to us, communication being a part of the early potty training method. He was late to walk and talk and even then, he would come up with a word, say it exclusively and constantly for a few weeks and then forget it. When we taught him things like how to clap, we had to practice it for a while every day before he would try to imitate it, then if we didn’t practice it daily, he would forget that too. His adorable little body seemed oddly stiff, he didn’t cuddle in like most babies did and while he would sit there and smile, he seemed lost in his own dream world and did not respond to much around him. 

After rounds of specialists, three days after the birth of our second child, when Jake was 19 months old, we were given the diagnosis of Potocki-Lupski Syndrome, a genetic disorder, a replication of a tricky part of chromosome 17. The pediatrician gave us some pages photocopied from a sterile medical textbook listing the myriad of things that our child was never supposed to do and all the difficulties that he would face throughout life. We were floored and devastated. I leapt into research but everything I found on his diagnosis upset me more and I spent the first few months of our second child’s life crying. I remember asking another pediatrician about what Jake could be expected to achieve in his life and he told me proudly about a similar child who had made his first independent phone call with some limited language by the age of 18. While I understand now how incredible these milestones are for families of children with special needs, however as a new parent at the time, I did not find that information comforting. I asked another doctor what “developmentally delayed” meant, hoping that it meant he would just catch up later. She gently told me that it was a polite term for “mentally retarded”. Indeed as my darling baby could not even master or remember “clap”, how on earth was he going to build higher order skills to handle life? 

Fortunately we have always been alternative minded and I managed to shake myself away from depressing mainstream research. I turned to Down’s Syndrome as a more commonly known genetic disorder, figuring that some clever parent there had found some breakthroughs for their child. And indeed I was right! After scouring FB pages and parent groups, I found in the Down’s Syndrome world that amazing things were happening for children who had either one or both of two things: biomedical intervention and neurodevelopmental therapy. So we decided to launch into both. It took a few years to get going with the biomedical, but with NACD we were able to start immediately. Out of all the neurodevelopmental organizations I liked NACD the most as they had a program that cut to the chase with the most time effective and modern methods, and they also offered ongoing parent support and coaching which as a floundering and disorganized parent, I knew I would need. 

At the time we stared, I remember Jake had a lot of unusual behaviors, every time he saw the ocean he would freeze and stare it and refuse to move on. As we lived in a small island community glimpses of the ocean were frequent. He’d open and close cupboard doors, arrange things in straight lines and never wanted to interact with other kids. He had very limited speech, and all sorts of motor skills problems. He could not even pedal a tricycle. 

I can’t remember much about that time now quite honestly. I was frequently sick and exhausted from having 2 children close together and with an undiagnosed autoimmune condition in the background. My husband and I did program as best as we could though and I remember starting to feel hope. Jake’s mind started to unlock, he started to be able to learn and we discovered he had a few superpowers, an amazing ability understand and order numbers, remember items on sight and he could even say his alphabet backwards. For a child diagnosed with a severe short term memory problem, this felt like sunshine from the heavens. NACD kept guiding us with program and as a family we were feeling more and more normal every day. We started a biomedical approach with specially developed Nutrivene vitamin supplements around the age of 4 and then everything really came together, Jake seemed to “wake up” to a new level of awareness, his speech and motor skills took off and we were so happy. Our second child, typically developing was put on program too and he was well ahead with all his milestones. 

While I don’t remember too many details of that time now, suffice to say we went from despair, hopelessness and rounds of specialists who used lots of big words but actually did nothing to actually help, to feeling like a happy, hopeful and normal family. We no longer felt like a “special needs” family. Program was very hard in those first years, but we were getting results and our lives back! It was wonderful to finally feel like a “normal” family.

We moved overseas then and stopped our NACD program for many years, happy to just live a normal life. Jake still had challenges, but he doing so much better. He started school with an aide but his superpowers really helped him through, from a child who couldn’t remember how to clap he now had the most astonishing memory! He had a phenomenal ability with geography, and started winning the school’s geography contests from first grade. He beat all the high school kids and even the school superintendent when he stepped in as a special guest. He knew every country, capital, flag, location, shape, and once he mastered that he turned to history and somehow developed an incredible grasp of historical details on top of that too! 

We started formal homeschooling formally around third grade when the covid lockdowns started and muddled through that for a few years. When Jake hit puberty it became apparent to his father and I that he needed further help. He was still having a lot of trouble with reading, he’d been recently diagnosed with an eye tracking problem but the mainstream offered us nothing except devices to learn to live with it. We had tried everything but gotten nowhere. He still had struggles with social skills and motor skills, and while his speech was reasonably good, it was still hard for him. 

As the worry started rising again, we turned to the place where we’d found hope before, the NACD! And in just 7 months back the results have already been incredible! Jake started in November at an auditory processing of 4-5 and in 7 months is has now just touched on a 7! His maturity and awareness has developed in leaps and bounds with it. His eye tracking is improving and reading is getting easier for him every day. He can swim now, and his social skills are improving. He has developed a love for math as the NACD teaches it, and will joyfully tackle page after page of his math text book just for fun. Before NACD he struggled with basic concepts. He is taking off and once again we couldn’t be happier. My only regret is we didn’t get back to it sooner, but fortunately NACD is helping us to catch up and overcome for that lapse quickly! 

I should mention my second son, DJ too. While typically developing he did program for a year or two when he was barely a toddler, and he has continued to go from strength to strength. When he started school the testing they gave him said that he was in the top 1% and was considered gifted and talented. When he was 9, he started getting impatient with all the attention Jake got for his his impressive history and geography knowledge and told me he wanted a superpower too. After watching Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata on you tube he decided that it was a pretty nice song, and he wanted to play it. He slowed down the finger movements from a You Tube video and copied them. Within just a few months he was playing piano surprisingly fluently. A music teacher at a summer camp a few months after he started hailed me down one day with wide eyes asking me if I knew that DJ was unusually talented. He is now 12 and works in our community playing piano at events. He is well paid and makes great tips too! 

Everything that DJ does he does so easily and at a high standard. Around the age of 10 he the took up the Rubik’s cube, mastered it in record time and at high speed. It didn’t take him long to get to world competition speeds on nearly of the all the cubes, but then he lost interest and moved on. He is very entrepreneurial, and through primary school would frequently came up with new games or projects which fascinated and created a following amongst other kids. 

Previously homeschooling DJ in math was not working and he had seemed to be going backwards so I put him back in school for math. He was doing reasonably well, but after starting NACD for just a few months his teacher contacted me in amazement asking what we were doing as in the MAPS testing DJ had suddenly jumped from a 6th grade level to an 11th grade level almost overnight! Here’s the message I got from his teacher: “Hey Melissa, just wanted to share some great growth from DJ on our winter math Maps test! He improved his score by +18 points from his fall score! (+3-5 is a significant amount for a year so this is pretty impressive!). Went from a 6th grade average to testing at the 11th grade average! Very proud of him and the hard work he has put in.” A jump of 18 points in a season when 3-5 is a significant amount for a year? Wow. The only thing we had done differently was to start NACD again and get to work on his processing! 

Would DJ be doing so well without the early intervention of NACD in making sure his development was all so perfectly addressed? I guess we will never know but as a mom I am sure NACD had a lot to do with it! 

NACD are truly miracle makers. Sara, our evaluator has laser vision and doesn’t miss a thing. Our program is perfectly tailored to both children, exactly what they need. The parental support and coaching is beyond invaluable. Any behavioral, teen attitude issue is quickly nipped in the bud, and we have a smooth running household now where my boys help out, are well behaved, and are developing into responsible, helpful young adults with initiative. Amy is a coaching wonder woman, and has helped me tremendously to get my act together. NACD offers a whole family, whole life perspective that gives you the perfectly tailored program to your child and life, with the support you need to put it into action, while missing nothing. Chores, responsibilities, and the child’s personal growth and happiness are all a part of it. And guess what? The kids love it. They think homeschooling is fun. Working on processing is central, and we celebrate every step up. Processing parties are the new fun thing in our family! 

Our life can truly be measured in BEFORE and AFTER NACD. All the behind the scenes staff are incredible too, and I can honestly say that I feel like they are family, a group who has always been there for us, giving us the answers and support we need to live our best lives. We are living our dream in remote Alaska, a wild and different life, unconstrained from needing to be in city centers, near specialists and therapists. Life is happy, hopeful and wonderful and I will be forever grateful. 

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The post Kelly Family Testimonial appeared first on NACD International | The National Association for Child Development.

At the time, my son was attending a private school in a small town, which struggled to provide the resources and time necessary for him to thrive. NACD equipped me with the tools and techniques to effectively tutor him, and I saw immediate improvements in his reading abilities. Prior to our engagement with NACD, he was processing information at a level typical of a 5-year-old, even though he was 7. He was at the end of first grade and reading at kindergarten level.

Through NACD’s targeted activities, like digit sequences, he began to mature and gain awareness of the world around him. It’s been incredible to watch him grow in confidence and see his self-esteem improve. NACD not only provides educational support but also empowers me as a parent to help my son reach his full potential. Thank you, NACD, for your invaluable assistance and guidance!

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The Murphy Family’s experience with NACD has come at three major crossroads in our life. The first was when our oldest son was 18 years old and sustained a traumatic brain injury and shattered pelvis in a car accident. Two years later, we sought out NACD again when I (Kara) was completely overwhelmed by all the different learning challenges and exceptionalities that we were facing with our homeschooled children. I’m not sure, but I think we may set a record when we started “doing program” with seven children all at the same time. Our third major experience with NACD was when we found out that the baby I was carrying had spina bifida, a birth defect that affects the spine in a similar way to a spinal cord injury. Patrick’s lesion level was quite high, and the prognosis was that he would likely never walk, move or have sensation below his waist, he would not be able to urinate on his own, and he would be unable to control his bowels for his whole life.

On the first two major challenges, I can report that our experience with NACD was a complete success. Our son, Rich, made a full recovery within a year of his accident, an outcome that is unheard of for people with a TBI. Within two years of starting the six boys and one girl “on program,” all of the children were performing at, and mostly above, grade level in all subjects. Two are still in high school, but the rest graduated on time or ahead of schedule. Three are married, have children, and two own their own (or are part-owners of) businesses. 

Patrick is seven years old and his story is still being written. He started crawling and pulling up to standing when he was eight months old. He can currently stand for up to 30 minutes independently and takes up to 10 steps on his own. He has control of his bowels and is able to catheterize himself into a toilet. Patrick’s strength is constantly improving, and we have hope that he will get to the point that he will be able to walk independently.

We were devastated when a state trooper showed up on our doorstep on February 6, 2013 to report that on his way to a men’s morning prayer meeting our 18-year-old son slid on black ice, lost control of his car, and smashed into a tree. He was flown by helicopter to a bigger hospital in the next city. Steve arrived at the hospital first and had to confirm Rich‘s identity. He was rushed into surgery where a portion of his skull was removed to allow for the swelling that comes from a traumatic brain injury. We spent eight days in the ICU not sure if Rich was going to make it or not. Once he was stable, he was moved by ambulance to another hospital, where an orthopedic surgeon put a steel rod through his pelvis. While he was recovering from that surgery, we got a call from a family who had gone through a similar thing and had seen our prayer request on our church’s email loop. Knowing that we were homeschoolers and very committed to providing as much therapy at home as we could, they thought we should know about NACD. We are so grateful that that family reached out. We were still in the hospital when we talked to Bob Doman for the first time. He helped us to create a strategy to get Rich transported back to our home instead of being sent to a facility where he would receive one hour of therapy a day and spend the rest of his day staring at blank walls. 

Sixteen days after his accident, Rich came home. Because Rich was not able to stand or walk and at that point we had to transport him via ambulance, our first evaluation was over video conferencing. I still remember that very first program we received. I remember looking at the frequency and duration columns and thinking that the frequency referred to how many times per week an activity needed to be done. Surprise! That was how many times per day the activity needed to be done. At that stage of our life, we had 10 children at home, six of them we were homeschooling. “Doing program” was a big change. I (Kara) couldn’t implement all of it on my own alone. Other family members got involved and some of Rich‘s friends even helped him with program activities. Six months after starting his program, Rich was almost one hundred percent recovered. This is astonishing compared to most statistics about people who suffer from a TBI. 

We continued “doing program” with Rich for another six months and then he went back to working full-time and pursuing his life goals. He is now married, the father of seven, and part owner of a construction business. 

It was about a year later when I was in a crisis. Overwhelmed with seven children ages 16 to 4, all homeschooling, most struggling with academics, and feeling like we have been dealing with the same problems over and over without any long-term solutions. There was some overlap of problems between the children, but by far the worst challenge was our eight-year-old who I would later find out was what we call “stimmy.” For an entire year I tried to teach him to read using the “best” method and program available. We were still on lesson three. He showed zero comprehension. It was in the middle of the night and I was crying out to the Lord for some kind of solution when he brought to mind some of the activities that we had done with Rich after his accident. I wondered if NACD could help us. As I looked into it, it became very clear that NACD would not only help our eight-year-old, but it would be very beneficial for all the children. Some of the challenges that we have dealt with include what would have been labeled auditory processing disorders, dyslexia, hyper mobility, and eye tracking disorders. Each child’s particular mix of these was individual, but there was a lot of overlap between them. 

That’s when we may have set a record for the most children to begin NACD at the same time. We took an entire day of evaluations just for our family—Matthew, Harrison, Jonathan, Jackson, Gabriel, Josiah, and Maggie. 

At our first evaluation, I was convinced that we had wasted our money. Miss Ellen sat and talked to each of the children, gave them a couple of simple academic placement tests, and had them perform a series of activities. After all, I had given my children lots of placement tests. And what were those simple little activities supposed to tell her? The answer was—everything! I think I sat with an open mouth while Ellen gave in-depth insight into each of our children’s personalities and challenges. She was able to explain why the methods and programs that I was using were not the best for each child. And for the first time since beginning homeschooling, she offered answers to the problems that had plagued us. 

This time when I received our first programs, I knew that the frequency number meant how many times per day. I believe I spent the first three days after receiving the kids’ programs wondering, “how in the world are we going to get all this done?” How would we have survived without the practical suggestions of our NACD coach, BJ?

The first thing we did was pair older and younger children together. The two oldest and our adult daughter, Elizabeth, who was still at home, paired up with the three youngest and the fellows in the middle got me. Of course, I had to train the older three how to do the activities with the younger ones, and some of their activities I chose to do myself, but I believe that helping their younger siblings prepared them to be good parents in the future. I made checklists, put them on clipboards, and inspected what had been accomplished every day and every week. We went from being a “relaxed homeschool” family to being a very structured homeschool family. It was a big cultural shift. But it worked. One of the children went up four grade levels in reading in the first three months. We finally understood what was going on with our eight-year-old and we had strategies to use to address the underlying problems and, more importantly, to fix them. 

That’s one of the things that sets NACD apart from most “special needs” programs. The goal of NACD is to fix underlying problems rather than to teach strategies to accommodate problems. 

We had just gotten to the point that we felt like we might be able to back off a little from “doing program” so intensively all the time when, at the 20-week ultrasound, we found out that our new baby would be born with spina bifida. Spina bifida is a neural tube defect, and Patrick would be born with an already damaged spinal cord. His first surgery was 16 hours after he was born, his second when he was three weeks old. 

From the time we found out about Patrick’s diagnosis, we were in close contact with Ellen and Bob. As soon as Patrick recovered from surgery, we began program with him. Patrick’s program implementation is still a whole-family affair. His older brothers do most of the physical pieces with him. (Ironically, Patrick thinks that his “program” is only the physical activities that he does with his brothers. He doesn’t realize that all the sequencing, reading, math, and unit studies are part of his program, too.) 

When Patrick was two and a half, his little sister joined the family and became the tenth Murphy child (of twelve) to become an NACD kid. Truthfully, the earlier you start NACD with your little ones, the more fun it is. They learn so quickly and it is easy to accelerate their learning which makes learning even more fun. Our NACD programs also prevent certain problems from occurring and catch things earlier, which is a huge benefit in addressing issues. 

NACD has benefited our family in innumerable ways. After thirty years of homeschooling and our many years in the homeschooling community, we can’t recommend it highly enough.

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“Your son may not survive the night”, doctors told us soon after our son, Baran, our firstborn, was born in 2009. Baran had suffered moderate hypoxic ischemia at birth. What started as a healthy pregnancy ended with our son being deprived of oxygen for more than three minutes. Needless to say, my husband and I were in shock. Those are words no parent ever wants to hear. Thankfully, Baran made it through the night, but we would learn a few days later that in addition to suffering moderate brain damage, he also suffered a stroke. Doctors told us he had a significant chance of being physically and developmentally delayed. We were devasted. 

The months that followed included many PT sessions, then OT, and then speech therapy. At 18 months old, Baran was diagnosed with speech apraxia. This diagnosis began a seven-year commitment to speech therapy sessions three days a week. At this point, my husband and I decided that I should quit my career to stay home with Baran and our newborn daughter, Maya. We moved from Chicago to Columbus, Ohio to be near family. I knew we had a long road ahead of us, and we needed the support of family. 

The early elementary years for Baran involved many IEP meetings, more speech therapy and a diagnosis of moderate receptive/expressive delay, which made reading comprehension and writing very difficult for him. Every IEP meeting left me feeling hopeless. I worried about his future daily and began searching for ways to help him. In my research, I discovered a book titled “The Brain That Heals.” There were so many therapies described in this book that helped people with brain injuries and so many stories of hope. I continued to search various therapies and came across The Listening Program. This was my first entrée into NACD. I remember talking to Lori about TLP, and she encouraged me to join NACD’s program. At the time, I didn’t think I could ever home educate my child and actually implement some of the therapies he needed. I didn’t feel qualified to do any of that. I told Lori that we’d start with TLP. In just three short months of using TLP, Baran’s reading score on the standardized reading test increased from below range to average range. I was thrilled. We also incorporated Simply Smarter into our daily routine. 

Unfortunately, during Baran’s second grade year, he suffered a seizure for the first time, and a whole new set of challenged confronted us. At that point, I filled out the online forms to fully participate in NACD, but I was still unsure about being qualified to implement their program. Luckily, Pam in the main office nudged me a bit, and before I knew it, we had our first evaluation with Bob at the end of Baran’s second grade year. Bob was so encouraging. My husband and I left that evaluation filled with so much hope. This was in sharp contrast to leaving IEP meetings in tears and with a pit in my stomach. We got started on program right away the summer before Baran entered third grade. By the fall, he no longer qualified for math services because his test scores were too high. At the next IEP meeting, I felt empowered. I knew what my son needed to excel. Unfortunately, my goals for him didn’t align with what the school deemed he needed to be successful. I remember Bob saying to me, “Melissa, I think you would feel a weight lifted off your shoulders if you home-educate Baran.” One month later, Covid hit, and all classes were online. I started to see how ineffective traditional instruction was for Baran. By May, my husband and I decided that I would home-educate Baran and our daughter, Maya, who joined NACD in the summer of 2020. 

Being a part of NACD has been wonderful for our family. Their programs are more than just an education plan. This is a lifestyle. Sara and Bob remind my husband and I all the time to challenge our kids, to give them chores, to assign tasks that will lead to more independence. I remember a few years ago I had a friend visit me from San Francisco. She and I were up late talking so I took the liberty to sleep late the next day. The next morning, Baran and Maya were up with their alarms, unloaded the dishwasher, and made breakfast for themselves before I even came downstairs the next morning. My friend, an early riser, was in awe of their self-sufficiency and chores at ages 10 and 12. 

Our daughter Maya is a typical kid doing not-so-typical things. Over the past two years, we’ve been entertained by the plays she’s written, directed and acted in with the help of her neighborhood and homeschool friends. At one point, we had 22 adults sitting in lawn chairs in our driveway watching one of her plays being performed in our garage. She also started her own handmade greeting card business, Creative Cards, selling cards at children’s business fairs to raise money for a local dog shelter. NACD has encouraged us to let our kids explore their passions.

Our son, who doctors thought may never walk, found a passion in running cross-country. For three years he’s been participating in a local running company’s programs for kids his age. In 2024, he ran in our city’s annual 5k for a second time, this time coming in 40^th place out of 1,000 runners and 10^th in the under-19 age group. He also started taking drum lessons two years ago. At first, my husband and I were regretting our encouragement that he take up playing the drums. Our noisy household became even louder! But, two years later, we find ourselves really enjoying Baran’s jam sessions. Recently, he participated in his first concert onstage in front of an audience, and he joined a rock band with other musicians his age. He still struggles with reading comprehension and writing and seizures, but he’s finding his voice in music and keeping himself in great physical condition by running.

I still have days when I get frustrated and wonder if we’ll ever go beyond X numbers on digit spans or master a certain math concept. And then, Sara reminds me to look back at prior evaluations to see how far we’ve come!

Thank you, NACD, for helping us see the potential in our kids, despite their challenges, and for encouraging us, as parents, to encourage their independence and see that they are highly capable. 

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We began our journey at NACD after finding a school system unable to help our daughter with Down syndrome to make progress and keep learning. The limitations they keep putting on her were really frustrating and we knew she was completely capable to achieve way more, only if we just find the right tools, and NACD was the answer we were looking for.  

Ever since she started her program at NACD she has made so much progress in many different areas — physically, academically, cognitively and with her verbal communication. Having the right support with the right program that keeps the focus on her own needs, has been life changing and nothing compares to prove that if given the right support she can go far, where the sky is the limit.

Along the way, as I kept learning about neuro development and how each kid can achieve their potential if everything is in place, we decided to bring our youngest daughter, since she was showing a few signs of some underdevelopment by reversing numbers with tactile and auditory sensitivity, so she began with program and it was the best decision ever. The meltdowns and very low levels of frustration tolerance are gone. That changed our life as parents and hers!  

Today with NACD guidance and the tailored programs for each of them we are at different place, we know that if we just keep putting the daily intentional work, it will completely pay off. Every milestone achieved reminds us that every effort is so worth it!   

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My name is Susan Olmstead, and my husband Rudd and I are blessed with three children: Verity (12); John (9); and Giselle (6). I grew up in a large, intense, Texan family before marrying a marine and working as a cardiac nurse. A few years passed before we started a family. We thoroughly enjoyed the cute kiddos but as they grew, I worried about their education and secretly wished to find a school that could take the responsibility off our hands. We had no idea the lessons that were in store for us!

As John grew, my health struggled and our resources were diverted along that vein. By the time we moved to the desert of Southern California, my health was depleted and Verity and John stepped into the public school system. Overtime, we grew increasingly concerned about what we were witnessing in the school. Verity seemed to regress in her reading, and so when COVID hit, we decided to try homeschooling.

Starting out in 2020, homeschool life was rewarding. The kids’ bright personalities resurfaced, and they were bursting with creative energy again. However, overtime, I noticed Verity still wasn’t progressing in her reading. Year after year, we tried reputable curricula and popular co-ops. I even reached into our savings and bought out an entire PreK-5^th grade Montessori school when it closed after COVID! Just the same, Verity continued to struggle with her reading. 

At this point in time, our days consisted of me coaxing my kids into finishing school assignments. Verity would read a page and cry in frustration. In fact, she cried easily in any subject as soon as she stumbled over a new fact – her confidence was bankrupted (much like my own). I was so tired by the time school was finished, that I’d retreat to my room for a spell, scrolling through my phone in vain. Unsurprisingly, housekeeping took a backseat which made everything worse. Most concerning to me of all was that I felt the connection with my kids was slipping away. At night, I lay in bed, thinking about the future and silently crying. Our homeschool life was nothing like what I had hoped for.

In the summer of 2023, I urgently hoped for a breakthrough (Rudd was deployed for a year and from experience, I knew I needed to offload some stress STAT). I suddenly remembered a friend had mentioned how NACD helped her grandson. I curled up on the couch in the living room, and began scrolling through the website, reading testimonies, and listening to videos. I felt a glimmer of hope and scheduled a consultation. From that moment on, my life has felt like a ship emerging from a storm, steadily sailing towards the NACD lighthouse. 

I learned quite a few things from implementing our NACD program. Firstly, it‘s a wonder how much my behavior effects my children’s ability to process and learn. Of course, the coaches were more subtle and didn’t come right and say it. They were full of helpful, creative ideas for whenever my kids (and I) would get stuck. Another surprise was learning how important it was to have fun and to play with the children throughout the school day. As a result, my connection with the kids has been revitalized and our relationships have thrived. I’ve also learned how effective it is to lavish attention when my kids achieve something positive. What a difference a well-timed compliment makes to boost their confidence and initiative. Similarly, we are learning the value of incentives. I wasn’t raised this way and thought the rewards would spoil the kids. Instead, they are hungry for ways to earn and negotiate for more. I often hear Bob’s voice in my head, “Look for ways to celebrate and build them up,” and sternly, “Don’t teach unless you’re having fun!” Hardly a day passes that I don’t recall something helpful from a coach or evaluator.

In the summer of 2024, having worked with NACD less than a year, it was fun to welcome my husband back from deployment to a completely different home. The kids are more confident and a bigger help around the house. Verity loves to read books and gets a thrill out of figuring out difficult words. I can stick to a schedule and play with my children without feeling exhausted by day’s end. I am so grateful for all the skilled support, insightful feedback, and timely encouragement we’ve received from the NACD professionals. The phenomenal lighthouse crew has brought us ashore. We found our resting place and I’m excited for the future!

The post Olmstead Family Testimonial appeared first on NACD International | The National Association for Child Development.

Our oldest had gotten sick at 7yo with something that was different from other sicknesses. We have no idea what it was, but what we did know is that it changed the way her brain functioned – it was VERY obvious. She developed some behaviors that were completely out of character and unexplained. My background is mental health, so I looked into things like OCD, PANDAS/PANS, anxiety, etc., but nothing really explained what was happening. We also spent some time working with a behavioral therapist, with very minimal results. And even then, it didn’t address the core issue – it was more of a band aid for one specific symptom. In addition to the behavioral therapist, we saw our family doctor, a neurologist, chiropractor, neuropsychiatric specialist, etc. Something was going on in her brain, but no one knew what it was or how to address it. And what was previously a fantastic and close relationship between her and I turned into frustration, anger, resentment, tumult. We were both miserable.

One of the NACD evaluators, Lyn Waldeck, came to one of our homeschool moms’ meetings to talk about NACD. It was great information, but I wanted to know what it was like from those actually utilizing NACD’s services. So I spoke with other families who were on program. In the end, I felt like this was our best (and only) hope. I finally told my husband, “Look, we can spend all kinds of money and time and effort going to all kinds of ‘specialists’ and hoping they can give us answers, or we can just bite the bullet and go through NACD, and have them tell us exactly what’s going on and how to address it.” He agreed, and I can tell you in all honesty that it’s been nothing short of life-changing for us. Not only did they explain what was happening in our daughter’s brain, they told us how to address things in VERY SPECIFIC detail. Now, to be clear, they couldn’t tell us what happened that changed her brain – and honestly I don’t think anyone can – but they were able to tell us how her brain was processing information, and how to deal with it so that her brain could function at an optimal level. They got their whole team together to create an individualized program FOR HER. Not a generic, all-kids-will-benefit-from-these-things kind of program – it was a “your kid’s brain is unique, so her program is unique” kind of thing. I’m not being dramatic when I say it changed our lives. They not only have helped with neurological issues and academic guidance, but behavioral issues, as well. It’s been worth every penny for us. My daughter’s concerning behaviors and extreme emotionality have disappeared, and she is excelling in so many ways. We’ve since gotten our younger daughter on program with NACD, and it’s also been such a relief! 

I love the fact that NACD is a “one-stop shop.” Our youngest daughter has a speech impediment, and instead of running around to (and paying for) speech therapy, extra appointments and time, NACD has a speech therapist. NACD believes that no one knows their child better than the parents. And no one wants children to succeed more than their parents. So they teach parents how to do the activities they would otherwise be doing in other appointments (speech, OT, PT, etc.). They teach you very simple ways to address your child’s issues, at home, on your own schedule, at your own pace. This saves everyone a lot of time, expense, and stress.

As a homeschooling family, the options for curricula, co-ops, etc. can be extremely overwhelming. Because NACD is so individualized, and because they take the time to get to know their families, they are able to say, “This is how your daughter’s brain works, so this specific curriculum would benefit her most.” And then they actually give guidance on how to use the curriculum so that it works best for the child. Without NACD, figuring out which curricula for each of our daughters would be extremely stressful (and expensive). 

There is no question or concern that is off-limits with NACD. I know I can email, text, or call our coach about anything. And believe me, I have sent many, many long emails. The personalized help has been priceless.

Every parent, at one time or another, has wished they had a manual for parenting. NACD, for us, is like having that individualized parenting (and schooling) manual. We’ve gone from, “This should only be about a year commitment to address some specific behaviors,” to, “We can’t live without NACD!”

The post Hale Family Testimonial appeared first on NACD International | The National Association for Child Development.

Nine years ago, I gave birth to a precious baby girl. Her Daddy, two year old sister Claire, and I were so excited to welcome her into our family. Five days after Alice was born, we received a surprise diagnosis; Alice had Down Syndrome. After the shock and initial grief, I immediately wanted to know everything that I could do for Alice to make sure that she would have every opportunity to grow and learn and do all the things that other kids get to do. I was discouraged with information that I got going down the rabbit hole of the internet, about how kids with Down Syndrome will never do this, or never do that, or struggle with this. I was worried that Alice would never speak, read, potty train, or gain self help skills that would lead to independence or a connected, meaningful life. I made endless appointments with health care specialists to make sure she was as healthy as possible, and I sought help from early intervention specialists. They gave me a few things to work on, but each specialist and therapist was only looking at their small piece of expertise. And Alice’s therapists only came once a month, and gave me maybe three things to try. I wanted to know what else I could do; I knew there must be more I could do to help Alice learn. 

It was then that a friend of mine from church told me to look up NACD, and how it had helped her two girls with autism so much. Now I knew these girls. One you would NEVER know was on the autism spectrum, and the other was maybe a bit socially awkward, but that was it. These were intelligent, educated and accomplished girls. At first I was skeptical, but I bowered my friends introduction seminar given by Bob Dowman. It was amazing! I have a degree in Elementary Education, and had taught school for 4 years. As I was listening, so many things made so much sense! It resonated with me on such a deeper level, and I knew that this was the right place for us.

At this point, Alice was 8 months old. We met with Sara Erling for the first time to have Alice evaluated. It was amazing! We were given a program to help my whole child, and there was definitely enough to do. We were now giving Alice the speech, cognition, and physical input that Alice needed with the correct frequency, intensity, and duration everyday. Some things that we were asked to do were opposite the vastly popular opinions of early intervention specialists, but we trusted NACD and I am so glad we did!

Alice learned to talk, having so many words so much earlier than so many of her peers with Down Syndrome. After so much work, Alice learned to army crawl, then crawl, then walk with correct cross pattern, and the right gait to help her not have problems in the future. Alice learned to dress herself, and she potty trained! She is 100 percent independent for bathroom needs during the day, and has been for 3 years; this is a milestone that so many of her peers with Down Syndrome have not accomplished. Alice is reading at an early 2^nd grade level, and still going. Alice can do chores, and even make her own breakfast, something she is very proud of. All of the things that I was afraid that Alice would never do, she is doing already, and she just turned 9.

Do we sometimes get stuck in Alice’s development? Yes, but with one email to my mentor, we figure out how to make progress, although it may be slow at times, it is steady. We never stay stuck. NACD has been the most powerful partner in my parenting! Every time I do not know what do to, I can call and get specific help that addresses any behavior or problem at the developmental root. We are not just putting bandaids on problems or hoping a medicine will magically fix a behavior. NACD knows how to make changes, and what needs to be in place in order for function to improve in all areas. This partnership applies to all of my children. They have all been on NACD at different times with difference intensities, and I have seen them grow academically, behaviorally, physically, and socially.

One of the best things about NACD and our journey with Alice, is that her potential and progress is not limited. Sometimes I get discouraged that Alice is behind her typical peers and not doing what they are. Then I remember, that she is not doing it yet. Alice is smart, and capable, and can continue to make progress. With the right input, and time, Alice will continue to learn and progress. I do not have to be a slave to the special education system provided at the school. Alice does attend right now, because she loves it socially and it gives me time with my younger children, but her teachers are on board with what we are doing at home and even do reps at school. I have control of what Alice is learning at home, and it will not matter if I have to homeschool her eventually, I will have all the help and tools I need to make sure she can progress.

If you are a parent with a child with Down Syndrome reading this, I see you. I know that you may be looking for more for your child; more help, more hope, more function. You will find it here. I love to talk to parents with kids that have Down Syndrome and I would be happy to answer any questions about our journey with NACD. I am so grateful that we found it when Alice was young, and that I have a partner to do this thing called raising children with. It really has changed our lives, and blessed our family immensely and will continue to do so.

The post Thorup Family Testimonial appeared first on NACD International | The National Association for Child Development.

Lara was diagnosed with Williams syndrome when she was just 1 month old. At the time, the geneticists gave me a list of features and possible challenges of her syndrome and told me to put her in early intervention therapies to try to help her develop and keep up with her age. By the time she was 1 year old, we had already done a full developmental assessment and enrolled her in physiotherapy, oral motor therapy, and cognitive therapy, and I was running around from appointment to appointment with a crying child who seemed completely disconnected from everything going on around her, thinking I was doing my best to help her. For months we kept this routine; however, our struggles were growing. Lara had barely started crawling; she was not communicating with us in any way, and I always had the feeling like she could not understand me. She hated her therapy appointments, and so did I, and despite all our hard work, I could barely see any progress. Until I ran into a mother whose daughter had a similar condition and had been on the NACD program for a while.

I will never forget the first conversation with our coach, which was a breath of fresh air. For the first time, I felt like someone understood my challenges and believed in what my daughter could achieve and not only saw her challenges. Lara, who at the time was very stimmy and disconnected, responded very well to the program. In a matter of weeks, I started to feel like there was a change in her; she was responding to me and seemed more present, and ever since, program time has become the most important bit in our day. As we started the program, we also realized that our daughter had auditory processing disorder, which was causing her significant speech delay, fear of various sounds, and inability to focus on the talking addressed to her. Working on NACD’s program and the sound program, which they put her on as well, had a tremendous impact. She stopped crying randomly as she walked into different rooms and started paying more attention and responding more to us talking to her.

For more than 3 years now, NACD’s program has helped us navigate all of Lara’s challenges and focus on her strengths and capacities. The program addressed her physical development, her processing, her speech, her social/emotional development, and as she got into school, her academic development as well. Lara has progressed tramendously over the past few years, she is now almost 5 years old, an active, social, happy and pressent child, who is very eager to learn. She loves school and is learning very well in both English and Arabic. Her very frequent and immense emotional outbursts have improved tremendously. She is also talking loudly and more clearly than ever, and I am grateful for that every day.

There aren’t enough words to describe how much our program and coach’s guidance have helped not only my daughter but also helped me navigate my anxiety and fears as a mother and focus on helping my daughter the right way, and we depend on that guidance every step of the way.

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