Samuel's World*The Last 3 years Samuels World Update*
How time flies !!!!
And where do I start ????
After a harrowing year in 2006/7 we finally managed to get a Statement of Educational Needs for Samuel but alas it did not give us enough funding for extra help and support in a mainstream school all the time and Samuel’s Tourettes became much worse resulting in horrendous tic attacks, often very painful ones which meant Samuel had to come home from school many times.
We visited many LEA mainstream schools in the neighbourhood but due to Samuel being a very bright high functioning boy County did not agree that he would benefit from going to any of these schools and that he should stay at his present school because he was classed as an odity and did not fit into a category ??!!!!! You can imagine from a mother’s point of view that having someone say that statement about your own child was unforgiving and disappointing to say the least so….....
A year moved on with Samuel now out of school without tuition of any kind due to the severity of his tourettes – we had medical statements to confirm that Sam could not maintain mainstream school but all the paperwork gained seemed to be still in vain! We finally had to inlist the help of a SEN Solicitor plus a Barrister from London and started the Tribunal battle with County.
Last year in May 08 we finally won our case for Samuel to go to a specialised private school in Surrey – it has been a distressing stressful time resulting in thousands of pounds spent on solicitor costs which has crippled us financially – but we achieved happiness for our son for a very long time.
As a family we have tried to stay strong through the masses of telephone calls, letters and barrister meetings – the process of a Tribunal affected both my husband and myself mentally and I am still having counselling for flashback emotional moments caused by the constant waiting and anticipation incurred until the 11th hour when County backed down and conceded.
A year on and it is June 09. Sam has been at school a whole year now and gets funding for a weekly residential placement which is only an hour away from home. The education and learning that he is getting from this school means that he now uses a knife and fork when eating his dinners and he has learnt table manners. Sam now says sorry when he realises he is in the wrong and he is starting to learn about empathy and the emotions of others. He is still behind on his education by a few years but he is achieving day by day tasks that are building his confidence and self esteem and for once he is enjoying school and most importantly he is enjoying and liking himself!!
Grace (Sam’s sister) has also been diagnoised with possible Apergers Syndrome and we are awaiting the final results of that assessment. From a siblings point of view it has been a hard time for Grace but gradually as the years have gone by she like us has accepted Sam’s Tourettes which will only ever be a shadow of Sam, always there sometimes more days than others, like the sun and the rain.
Sam has access to many more opportunities now at school which hopefully day by day will mean that Samuel can develop into a confident person and be able to try and hopefully achieve anything that challenges him – he will be accepted into society with a purpose in life and we wish him masses of hugs, kisses and love for all that he has had to cope with – this journey has made us all a stronger person individually!
There are many families in the world who are going through similar family traumas, we all strive to succeed in nurturing our children through their precious early years of growing up whatever the circumstances.
My personal words to anyone facing a family trauma whatever that might be – take each day as it comes – never think to far into the future as that can always change – cherish every moment of your family’s lives and above all feel proud of yourself and your family.
lynette xx
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