Uniquely Created Branch 
of HGM 
"..Don't be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed" L850
I’ve shared most of this before but I wanted to share mine and my son’s journey again for the new UC Branch. My son Andrew has made a big improvement over 19 years, from a frustrated toddler to a kind hearted, caring family member. Here is a simplified version of the journey I have shared before:
Before having kids, I had three miscarriages while engaged. I worried it was because we weren't married and that I'd never be a mom, which I'd always wanted. After the third miscarriage, tests showed the baby had Down syndrome.
My husband and I married in 2001, and I got pregnant the next year. I was so thankful and prayed for a healthy pregnancy. A few months later, my husband left. I was devastated and found RMI. Our marriage has been restored twice, in 2003 and 2022. We were blessed with three sons.
My pregnancy with my middle son went well, though I had gestational diabetes. He developed slower than my first son, who walked early. Andrew only grunted instead of speaking at first, and doctors thought it was just because his older brother spoke for him. But by two, he only said a few words. We got him speech therapy because he was frustrated and people (mainly daycare) thought he was a brat. I prayed for him to speak and be understood because I knew that’s why he was acting out. Now at 19, he can talk well, and does it often! Though he sometimes speaks fast and has trouble with some sounds.
Around age 3, he started having strange episodes where he'd stare blankly for a short time. I took him to a neurologist, worried about a neurological issue.
The news was hard: he had epilepsy with absent seizures, but was diagnosed with generalized epilepsy. I prayed for healing and no serious problems. He was started on meds which made him angry and again my prayer was that these seizures would stop and he would one day be off all the medicine. Guess what? At 19 he is no longer taking medicine. I praised the Lord that he didn't have a tumor etc but was still fearful of the epilepsy diagnosis.
Over his 19 years, he has had other diagnoses from Doctors like Intellectual Development Disorder (low IQ), Autism Spectrum and ADHD.
I will be sharing more of this journey next month. I hope to hear from any with similar experiences. ☀️
Hello Hope,
I just wanted to thank you for this message.
My son, who is 4 years old today, still doesn’t speak very clearly. I have often placed this situation in the Lord’s hands, because I was afraid he might never speak.
But lately, I’ve been listening more carefully, and I can see that changes are happening. His older brothers, who are 21 and 18, take care of him and give him a lot of attention.
But I praise the Lord, because today we’re better able to understand what he’s trying to say.
Thank you for sharing precious Hope and what a beautiful promise you shared in the beginning. Although my son’s journey is different, I remember a therapist showing me that a lot of my son’s brain damage was in the part of his speech and that he wasn’t suppose to speak a word, but he didn’t need speech therapy and loves to talk, all because of what our precious Beloved Lord, our wonderful Healer.
Dear Hope, thank you for sharing your and Andrew’s story. So wonderful to read how our Heavenly Father restored your son’s development. Despite his diagnosis, I can see from what you wrote that he has become an amazing young man. What the daycare staff didn’t expect.
This piece you shared with us is the most recognizable to me.
“My pregnancy with my middle son went well, although I had gestational diabetes. He developed slower than my first son, who walked early. Andrew only grunted instead of speaking at first, and doctors thought it was just because his older brother spoke for him. But by two, he only said a few words. We got him speech therapy because he was frustrated and people (mainly daycare) thought he was a brat. I prayed for him to speak and be understood because I knew that’s why he was acting out. Now at 19, he can talk well, and does it often! Though he sometimes speaks fast and has trouble with some sounds.”
My son’s pregnancy was my second. His sister was six years older and from the beginning she spoiled him by giving him everything he wanted. He didn’t have to talk or walk. The first two years at daycare were also great for him. In contrast to your son, everyone was crazy about him. With his charm he knew how to get everything done. The few words he spoke were enough for us. We as parents and sister understood him and translated it for others. Then the concerns arose in kindergarten. Speech therapy was advised. That helped a little, but after two years a foundation was laid. My son is now almost seventeen and for only a year and a half he has been talking to us. Sometimes way too fast and not correct sentences, but we know what he means. His knowledge of words is also not great. Sometimes I feel guilty about the years that I should have paid more attention to his development. Now that he has been diagnosed with ADD, I have learned to stimulate him to talk. The blessing is that he now talks, he also tells things he wants to share. And I believe with the help of my Beloved that my son will become a talker with his Best Friend. Because He is the One who can help him with everything.
~~~
Beste Hope, bedankt voor het delen van jouw en Andrew verhaal. Zo geweldig om te lezen hoe onze Hemele Vader de ontwikkeling van je zoon heeft herstelt. Ondanks de diagnose die hij heeft gekregen kan ik lezen door wat je heb geschreven dat hij een geweldige jonge man is geworden. Wat de mensen van de dagopvang niet hadden verwacht.
Dit stuk wat je met ons deelt is voor mij het meest herkenbaar.
De zwangerschap van mijn zoon was mijn tweede. Zijn zus was zes jaar ouder en vanaf het begin heeft ze hem verwend door hem alles te geven wat hij wilde. Hij hoefde niet te praten of te lopen. Ook de eerste twee jaar op de dagopvang waren geweldig voor hem. In tegenstelling tot jouw zoon liep iedereen met hem weg. Met zijn charme wist hij alles gedaan te krijgen. De paar woorden die hij sprak waren voor ons genoeg. Wij als ouders en zus begrepen hem en vertaalde het voor andere. Toen kwamen de zorgen in de kleuterklas. Er werd geadviseerd om spraak therapie te volgen. Dat heeft een beetje geholpen maar na twee jaar was er een basis gelegd. Mijn zoon is nu bijna zeventien en sinds pas anderhalf jaar praat hij met ons. Soms veelste snel en geen correcte zinnen maar we weten wat hij bedoelt. Zijn woorden kennis is ook niet groot. Soms voel ik mij schuldig over de jaren dat ik meer aandacht had moeten besteden aan zijn ontwikkeling. Nu dat hij de diagnose ADD heeft gekregen heb ik geleerd om hem te stimuleren om te praten. De zegen is nu dat hij praat vertelt hij vanuit zichzelf ook dingen die hij wilt delen. En ik geloof met de hulp van mijn Geliefde dat mijn zoon een prater zal worden met zijn Beste Vriend. Want Die is immers Degene die hem met alles kan helpen.