Aging Out Children

The girl has a congenital defect of the nervous system in the form of a meningeal hernia at the lumbosacral level, a bifurcation of the thoracic spine with hydrocephalus and paralysis of the lower limbs. The girl has a valve in her head that regulates the blood flow in the head and prevents the increase in intracranial pressure. She also has a neurogenic bladder – she needs to drink fluids regularly and change the catheter every 3 hours. She has a visual impairment, wears glasses: ER: +3.5, EL: +4. and uses a wheelchair.

Despite her disabilities, the girl is very active. She is very happy to work during rehabilitation, thanks to which she is willing to participate in social life and has accepted her disabilities. She is attending wheelchair dance classes. The girl functions very well on a daily basis and is independent.  She likes to play with younger children and often organizes games for them.

Rocky is a calm, pleasant  boy who lives in a group home in Eastern Europe. He is attached to his caregivers and responds well to them.

Although Rocky was born premature and with low birth weight; cerebral palsy; and speech, motor and cognitive delays, he is making good progress in his physical therapy and other supports. He can walk with minimal support, and his fine motor skills are also improving.

Severely impaired condition, polymalformative syndrome: Dandy-Walker syndrome, epilepsy, congenital hydrocephalus-ventriculoperitoneal shunt installed, dysfunction of the valve with a neuroinfection and a surgical treatment and revision of the valve system in the spring of 2015; anal atresia, sigmostoma and sagittal proctoplasty; mylticystic right kidney, kidney dysplasia, pyelectasis and hypertrophy of the left kidney, severe mental delay.

Connor is being raised in one of the biggest orphanages in Bulgaria where children often suffer from severe malnutrition, muscle hypotrophy and have severe delays in the neuropsychological development. He has a polymalformative syndrome, but one could see a dramatic change in his appearance in just two pictures- the first one taken in the end of November 2014 and the second one in June 2015.

He grabs a toy that is handed to him, holds it for a while and manipulates with it. He has started to more and more often reach with his hands and manipulate with hanging toys independently.

While involved in active interactions with adults, he would make his emotional responses known with his nonverbal behavior. He seeks contact with familiar adults by reaching out his hand, grabbing an adult’s hand and he would even sometimes direct an adult’s hand towards his face so as to be caressed.

He falls asleep easily and his sleep is calm. He is fed with a bottle. He gets anxious while his clothes are changed and while bathed.

Jonas is on several medications.  Jonas’s motor activity completely corresponds to the expected developmental level for his calendar age.  Although his fine motor skills need to improve further, Jonas is able to hold a pencil properly. He can inlay elements with some guidance. He puts cubes one on top of the other. He threads colored rings on a fixed stand, but not yet in accordance with their size.

There are some difficulties in attracting and keeping his attention focused. Jonas plays for a longer period of time whenever he is interested in the respective activity. Jonas orientates well in a familiar environment. He distinguishes between day and night based on his everyday routines – sleeping, meal times, rest. He recognizes the neighborhood around the foster family’s home.

Jonas is reported to have achieved noticeable progress in terms of expressing his emotions and feelings, which are becoming more diverse. He reacts appropriately to smiles and angry faces and also to the tone of voice one talks to him with. He demonstrates his love, attachment and attention for others. He greatly enjoys it when others play with him. Jonas has attached to all members of the foster family.

An echo-cardiogram and electrocardiogram performed showed ebstein anomaly (Horner Syndrome), moderated apical interventricular communication. He doesn’t require surgical treatment based on electrocardiogram results; he requires biannual follow up with both echo-cardiogram and electrocardiogram. It is possible that as an adult he will probably require tricuspid valve replacement.  Pablo doesn’t show signs of recent or past of physical abuse.

Adeline is communicative with children and adults. She answers questions. Her expressive and impressive speech is developing. She follows verbal directions. She demonstrates a desire for emotional closeness. She willingly interacts with children and adults. She has established friendly relationships with her classmates. She loves listening music and dancing, as well as, drawing and coloring. She has delays in academics and receives support from a resource teacher at school.

Gabi is physically healthy with normal physical development. She is radiant and very active.

Gabi responds adequately to praise and punishment. Gabi establishes and maintains eye contact. She seeks the attention of the people around and she seeks familiar people and their closeness purposefully.

Gabi understands the meaning of words that are often used in her surroundings. She expresses her needs and wishes through vocalization.

In her spare time Gabi likes watching TV, playing on a phone, listening to music and going out for walks.

He has been living with a foster family since 2013.

He has a systolic murmur along the precordium; hyperkinetic conduct disorder and a mild mental delay. The child started walking on time, but his speech is underdeveloped. The child cannot stay focused for a long time while playing. He understands and follows simple instructions.

The agency has current medical reports available for serious inquiries.

UPDATE March 2017:   previous Diagnosis of Atypical autism that was changed to hyperkinetic disorder, very interested in motor activities. Responds to positive interactions and praise from familiar adults, but can become anxious in new situations or if a familiar caregiver is not around. He seeks comfort from familiar adults and can become sad if one leaves.

*Abner’s social worker reported that according to the specialists, supervising Abner’s condition and development, the diagnosis of atypical autism is no longer valid and it will be deleted from Abner’s formal paperwork that is to be updated in the following months

Abner likes to keep himself busy exploring! His favorite activities are the ones that include movement, such as going for a walk. He very much likes to spend time looking through books. He also likes all musical instruments and toys that play melodies and sounds. His favorite toy is a children’s laptop that plays songs. When he hears a melody he tries to dance.

There has been a progress in Abner’s speech development as he has started using a lot of words. He now forms sentences containing 3-4 words, albeit dyslexia is observed.

Gary is currently living in a group home for children with special needs. He can move around the group home in a gait trainer. Due to his low tone, he can not sit or stand independently. He can roll from back to stomach. He can hold a toy and will manipulate it, though he does not always understand the purpose of the toy. He enjoys interacting with adults and will smile and demonstrate appropriate emotions when engaged in activities.

Malory is a beautiful, giggly girl who lives with a foster family in Eastern Europe. With a contagious smile and laughter, Malory runs, climbs and could be described as an active child. She enjoys the extra attention she receives from her foster parents. She is physically healthy, and she eats well. Her weight and height are catching up with the standards for her age.

Malory has some developmental delays that her caregivers attribute to early neglect and lack of stimulation. She has difficulty pronouncing some words, and her learning is below the norm for her age. Malory understands everything her elders say. She cannot talk yet, but she can pronounce separate words and sounds. She knows her name and the people’s names living around her. She plays with the other kids from the group, and she prefers more dynamic games.

Malory gets one-on-one instruction in each subject, participating in different programs – therapeutic, musical and rehabilitation. She is much calmer then she was before, and she respects the authority of the foster family.

Additional videos are available from her agency.

Vassilio can hold objects in both hands and his vocabulary consists of about 10-15 words. He understands verbal instructions and follows them. Vassilio likes to listen to music, dance and watch puppet shows. He likes to communicate with adults and children and likes to be hugged and touched. Vassilio can put small bites of food in his mouth and can drink out of a cup. He cannot dress or undress himself. The agency has additional information and photos.

Brendan is an adorable little boy. He was born prematurely with a generalized systemic immaturity. He spent his first four months in an incubator, where he was diagnosed with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia and Hydrocephalus caused by Periventricular Leukomalacia. Due to prolonged incubation, he currently has vocal chord paralysis. He has delays in his gross and fine motor skills according to his age; however, he is able to search with his eyes for visual and aural stimuli, can open and look at his hands, and is able to hold objects in his hands. He is usually active, awake and aware of his surroundings, and with therapy will be able to continue to develop gross and fine motor skills.

This sweet boy deserves a loving family who can provide him with care and support as he continues to grow and progress.