Elijah was born February 16, 2009. I was so excited when he was born because me and my husband already had three girls and when Elijah arrived he made our life complete! I noticed the first few months of Elijah's life that he did not coo, babble, laugh out loud, or even cry tears when he was wet, stinky, or hungry. He would mostly holler when he wanted something but the majority of the time Elijah always had a big smile on his face. Then at the time he was suppose to be sitting up, crawling, pulling up to stand, and walking he was delayed in these areas. People would often ask me why was he not doing these things yet and I would tell them that he was my last baby and I done everything for him. When Elijah turned nine months old I was introduced to Early Intervention until he was the age of three. During this time he received PT, OT, and Speech. Now Elijah is your typical four year old but he is still nonverbal and very hyper now. In 2012 we took him to Lehbonheur to have a sleep apnea test done thinking maybe lack of oxygen to the brain is why Elijah was not talking but it came back normal. A few months later Lehbonheur done a MRI of his brain and it came back normal so Lehbonheur finally done blood work and it came back that Elijah has a Microchromosome 16 Deletion Syndrome. This I had never heard of before in my life but the doctor explained to me and my husband that the brain has 46 microchromosomes and the number 16 is your speech and this is why Elijah does not talk. The doctor did mention that some children never talk and others are later delayed. The characteristics that follow this syndrome is Autism and Hyperness. Elijah continues PT, OT, and Speech but the good news is me and my husband both have heard him say momma, da da, Acie for his sister Gracie, and cheese for the camera.

Joanne
Fulton, MS