(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Parker and his mother Ashley both radiate gratitude and love for the staff at Children’s Colorado Therapy Care on Telstar because it was there that they found answers to everyday struggles.
“Children’s has been amazing, so it’s really helped us, like, be a better family because before we there were so many things that we didn’t understand, like why was he upset and what are we doing wrong as parents,” Ashley, said. “There’s no book for how to be a parent and so we just weren’t sure, like what is wrong.”
It was not what they were doing wrong, it was what they did not know Parker was struggling with–immense anxiety and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, also known as ADHD.
“I was like acting a little bit off, I was more crying,” Parker said. “Once we went there, they figured out that I had ADHD and I’m now on some meds, and I’m very more well than I was and I’m really happy.”
Parker’s smile and positivity are instant upon meeting him and showing just how successful the care was with Children’s Hospital Colorado.
“The kid you saw today is perfect evidence of how well that works,” Clinical Director for the Colorado Springs Division of the Pediatric Mental Health Institute, Lauren Eckhart, said. “We have a team all in one building that can really collaborate and work together.”
The team effort is a key component in Parker’s story as Children’s Colorado Therapy Care on Telstar houses multiple medical experts who all came together to help him and his family receive the support they needed.
“We have therapists and psychologists, who are all licensed clinicians that provide evidence-based therapies,” Eckhart explained. “Then we also have… our psychiatric nurses, we have our teams of social workers and behavioral health navigators who help connect families to services in the community.”
Since multiple departments are housed in this location, they can work together to navigate the specific care that families may need.
“The kid you saw today is perfect evidence of how well that works and we have a team all in one building that can really collaborate and work together,” Eckhart said. “His therapist works hand-in-hand with his psychiatric nurse practitioner.”
Bringing an awareness towards mental health services and the need to have those challenging conversations was a major piece of advice from Eckhart.
“It’s okay to not be okay,” Eckhart stated. “How do we as a family, how do we as a school, how do we as a community support somebody through that and is coming to therapy once a week enough? Maybe someone needs a higher level of care, like a partial hospitalization program or even an inpatient program, then that’s what we need to do to keep them safe right then.”
While this chapter of the Southern Colorado family’s life has been filled with some bumps in the road, now the path is a whole lot smoother thanks to the help and encouragement of those at the hospital.
“This has just been life-changing for us,” Ashley said. “It feels great that we have a place where we feel safe to cry or, you know, say that we’re angry or we just are like, ‘I don’t know what to do anymore.’ So, I feel like a lot of gratitude for the health care providers here for all their help and just making this a good place to be.”
Parker and his mother Ashley walked down the hallway of Children’s Colorado Therapy Care on Telstar.
As for 10-year-old Parker, he has found ways to work through his anxiety and emotions, but at the end of the day, these tools were all thanks to those at Children’s Colorado Therapy Care on Telstar.
“I tell them, thank you very much,” Parker exclaimed. “You’ve done a lot for me and some other kids and I hope you keep doing what you do.”
During this season of giving, you can help support the mission of Children’s Hospital Colorado and express gratitude to the dedicated staff striving to create more success stories like Parker’s come true.
Parker is also one of the incoming Children’s Hospital Colorado Patient Ambassadors who will share his story with the community, generating a greater awareness of the positive impact Children’s Colorado has on patients and their families.
