Meet Jason!
As an essential service provider, we've remained open to ensure we're here for the most vulnerable people and families throughout the community. We have continued to provide mental health services, substance use services, autism therapies, and support for emotional trauma. During these times, more than ever before, we want to encourage you to make your mental health a priority, as well as checking in on your loved ones. Just as adults may have difficulties coping during COVID, children and teens are also finding it difficult to cope with the loss of their daily routine, school activities and critical socialization with classmates.
Children like Jason, who has anxiety and an autism spectrum disorder, need extra support and attention right now. Oftentimes when children and teens come to Easterseals MORC, they're in crisis and in need of support to help them stabilize and find services that match their needs. This was the case with Jason - just before coming to Easterseals MORC, he had been in extreme crisis which was unintentionally magnified by a medication adjustment. As the crisis worsened, his aggressive behaviors caused the school to ask him not to return with this 7th grade classmates and he was ultimately admitted into a psychiatric hospital for treatment and support. Once out of the hospital, Jason's family turned to Easterseals MORC for therapy. For Jason, the start of 8th grade wasn't looking much brighter and was proving to be quite difficult. While he avoided being hospitalized, he was sent to an alternative school for children with significant behavioral challenges to finish out the year. Not to be defeated, Jason was dedicated and focused in therapy at Easterseals MORC. Because of his persistence, he was able to start 9th grade at a public high school. Although he was worried it wouldn't go well, he continued to work hard. The team at Easterseals MORC worked closely with school staff to improve the support he received in his environment as well. Once the laws changed and the autism benefit became available to children over age six, Easterseals MORC staff pushed hard to get Jason into Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy. There was some hesitation because he was 16 at the time and would have been the oldest child Easterseals MORC served in ABA therapy. But Jason and his family persisted, and once he got into ABA therapy, he saw some incredible progress.
ABA therapy helped Jason learn how to take care of his own hygiene tasks, make himself a simple meal, and many other wonderful every-day tasks. Jason continued to work hard in services and graduated from high school last year. At no point during school did he get suspended or have any disciplinary or behavioral concerns! Jason continues to receive services from Easterseals MORC and transitioned really well when services went online during the pandemic.
