“I thought since Bethany was a preemie, she would be behind in achieving milestones, but everything took too long. She was not sitting until she was a year old,” said Bethany’s mother, Delila.

Bethany was officially diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was 15 months old. Delila searched for therapy options that would encourage and strengthen her daughter. After several disappointing experiences, two of their friends recommended the Achievement Centers for Children. “Oh my goodness, I could hardly believe the difference when I walked into the Achievement Centers in Westlake with four-year-old Bethany and met her physical therapist, April, and her occupational therapist, Liz. Bethany just latched on to her therapists here. She wanted to please them and became super determined to do whatever she needed to do. She has the right therapists to push her, while always so friendly, kind, and encouraging her.”

Bethany steadily progressed in her therapies, gaining strength and coordination, and began using a walker. Now eight years old, she proudly uses her new pink and purple crutches. Bethany’s therapists have built a relationship with her where she feels comfortable here and is happy to come. “I really didn’t think she would get to the place where she wouldn’t use the walker and just use crutches. It was beyond my expectations,” said her mother. She also learned many self-help skills such as dressing herself and brushing her teeth and puts her hair into a ponytail on her own. In occupational therapy, she’s working on handwriting and putting her leg braces on independently.

“When you have a child with a disability, every step of progress looks huge, almost impossible. I’m so pleased with her progress! As I look back, I wish I would have known about this place when she was a baby.”