Reid's story

Reid Johnson is an energetic 5-year-old. Like most kids her age, she loves playing outside, watching her favorite shows (Mikey Mouse Clubhouse and Daniel Tiger) and spending time with her family. “And of course, annoy her siblings,” her mom Nicole adds. But Reed’s parents needed help navigating her autism diagnosis.

“We didn’t know how to help her, and it about broke us,” Nicole said. “We thought we would be stuck in our house for the rest of her life, in fear of going in public. She would not listen and would run away any chance she got.” That was also difficult for Reid’s older sister and younger brother. “It was hard on them to not do “normal” things,” Nicole said.

They tried in-home physical therapy but knew they needed something more. “RUSH Kids Crystal Lake was (thankfully) the only ABA clinic in our area with immediate openings,” Nicole said. “It is so convenient for her to receive all her treatments in one place, where her therapists can work together to help Reid achieve her goals.”

Nicole recalls the first time she knew Reid’s therapy was making an impact. “The first memorable moment in our journey was Reid being able to sit for 30 minutes straight during the Easter 2022 service at church,” she said. “Up until that time we rarely left the house; Reid craved a certain schedule and needed consistency. We are now able to go to parties and go to the grocery store without having to worry [about] Reid running away. We have even been able to go on long weekend trips and Reid will now sleep in unfamiliar places.”

Nicole says the success they’ve seen with RUSH Kids has been incredible. “Reid is blowing our mind with how well she is doing at everything,” Nicole said. “She is so incredibly resilient and we cannot wait to see how far she goes in life. We honestly thought Reid would never get to the point she is at today. We cannot thank all of the staff at RUSH Kids enough for helping her to succeed.”

Nicole was especially thankful for Behavior Analyst Lauren Buzinski. “She is always there to answer our questions (even after-hours) and has truly helped us bring all Reid has learned in the clinic to be applied at home,” Nicole said. “She has helped us as parents learn as well. We are now able to understand the way Reid thinks and responds and are better equipped to help her flourish in the real world. We are honestly so blessed to have met each and every one of the ABA therapists at RUSH. We are very sad Reid will be leaving in the fall, but know that she will now thrive in kindergarten because of all of them.”

We’re so honored to have been able to help Reid and her family meet their goals.