Family with 3 Autistic Children Needs Your Help

Hi, my name is Gina Greenway and I'm setting up this account for the Jaeckel family.

I've known Theresa Jaeckel for 15 years, beginning when she and I taught at the same middle school in Wichita, Kansas. She was a single mother at the time, with a beautiful daughter, Danae.

Ten years ago, she married the love of her life, Jeremy, and they settled down to expand their family.

Little in life could have prepared them for what happened next.

After a year of marriage, they welcomed a daughter, Piper. Everything seemed normal at the beginning. The first problems began when Theresa stopped breastfeeding Piper at 18 months. Soon afterward, Piper became so ill she was rushed to Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, where she was diagnosed with early Celiac disease. It is very rare for a child to be diagnosed this young. As soon as the young family settled into a gluten-free routine for their youngest, and the worst seemed to be behind them, Piper started having difficulty breathing. At 2 years old, she was diagnosed with asthma, requiring breathing treatments three times a day and inhalers as well as severe food allergies. She takes a steroid inhaler twice daily and has a rescue inhaler that she has to have with her at all times, along with an EpiPen.

Because Piper has such a rough start, her early outbursts weren't seen as anything more than the frustrations of a young child having to undergo repeated, invasive medical procedures. Piper would often bang her head on tables or slam her fists into her temples. She was unable to sit still and would frequently get overwhelmed with anger.

It wasn't until May 2020, after the pandemic, that the family got the diagnosis of Level 1 Autism/Asperbergers. The delay in a diagnosis was due to the fact that Piper is very high functioning. Piper sees a therapist every two weeks and sees another therapist to help her with her ADHD. She is currently getting straight As in fourth grade.

Five years after Piper's birth, in 2017, the family welcomed a second daughter, Aspen. She was a healthy eater, nursing almost constantly, and became a darling, chunky baby. As long as she was being held, she was also a happy baby. However, she was not meeting her milestones, and the family was concerned. She didn't crawl until she was a year old. She was 18 months before she showed interest in walking. Around this time, their once-happy baby started having rage fits that lasted longer than most temper tantrums. She was also slow in acquiring language. During a routine well-child checkup, the doctor suspected autism, and asked that Aspen undergo an evaluation when she turned 2-1/2, the earliest age autism can be diagnosed. The family was devasted to learn their second child also had Level 1 Autism six weeks later.

Aspen, now 5, is currently in preschool and having daily physical, occupational and speech therapy. She receives additional speech therapy before school one day a week. She requires a home therapist four days a week to keep her on track. This has helped so much, as she is on track to start kindergarten next year. Although she will be in a regular classroom, she will always need additional help to stay on target with her classmates and help with her meltdowns in public settings and school.

Less than 18 months after Aspen's birth, the family welcomed their only son, Jameson - who is the spitting image of his father. He was an adorable, happy-go-lucky baby. His only downside seemed to be that he never slept through the night (he still doesn't!). However, when he turned 18 months without having uttered a single word - not even "mama" or "dada", the parents feared the worst.

It's rare that autism strikes twice in a family, but it's rarer still for it to pass to both girls AND boys. The family was pretty certain that Jameson had autism at his 2-1/2 autism check, as he was (and still is) completely nonverbal. However, the diagnosis of Level 2 Autism, a more severe diagnosis than his sisters, left the family reeling.

When Jameson turned 3, his mother noticed he often stared into space. During these episodes, he would become completely non-responsive. Their neurologist suspects Jameson suffers from absence seizures, but because of his age and autism diagnosis, it's impossible to keep him still, and keep a cap on, for the required 24-hour test. In the meantime, he's had two convulsive seizures in the last six months. The family is at an impasse right now--without being able to catch the seizures on an EEG (they are happening daily and are of very brief duration), they are unable to treat the condition, until he's old enough to take the tests or his condition worsens.

The most heartbreaking thing about Jameson's severe form of autism is that there is a strong possibility that he will never live on his own. He has daily therapy sessions six days a week, even in preschool. At this time, with his inability to communicate, the family is concerned he may have to attend a special school.

All three children require six-day-a-week ABA therapy sessions, but the family is at risk of losing Medicaid, based on the fact that their father may end up making marginally over the limit.

Theresa long ago had to abandon her teaching dreams and become a stay-at-home mother. Her children simply need too much help for her to have an outside career. She's happy to do this, although it does cause the family financial strain.

They have barely been keeping their head above water. They long ago realized they would not be able to have a college fund for Danae, and that Jameson would probably continue to live with them well into adulthood, but just when they felt they were getting their feet under them, black mold was discovered in their home, causing health risks for all the family, but especially Piper, who has asthma.

Jeremy has been remodeling the house during his "spare" time between working two jobs.

The tipping point for the family happened just last winter when Theresa began having fainting spells and was diagnosed with POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome). This is a non-fatal, but incurable dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system. She has good days and bad, but on her worst days, she is unable to drive and needs help getting her children to their numerous therapy and medical appointments.

We know this is a time of financial stress and uncertainty for so many people. There is no amount too small to help this family cover their substantial medical bills. Just a few dollars would go a long way toward helping them stay afloat and care for their darling family.

Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for any help you can give.

We will keep you updated on the children's progress.