Parent Story: Comprehensive Assessment - Jake (6 Years)

The Challenge

Despite working in a career that involves assessing children, when it came to her own six-year-old son Jake, Carla couldn't get anyone to take her concerns seriously.

From age two, Jake displayed emotional dysregulation, with tantrums lasting for hours. Health visitors dismissed it as normal ‘terrible twos’ behaviour. Challenges continued to surface throughout nursery and into school, yet despite the school making complaints, they refused to acknowledge anything was actually wrong.

"For the last two years of his school journey, I've been led to believe that his behaviour is over and above what is acceptable for all the other children of his age. And there's real concern," Carla explains. "But they still refused to acknowledge that. They said, 'We don't see anything wrong with him, Mum. Kids are kids.'"

Carla attempted an NHS referral, knowing the wait would be long, but without the school's support was unsuccessful. The private ADHD assessment route resulted in the referral being closed without anyone even seeing Jake because there was a discrepancy between the school's and parent's questionnaires. Despite her professional expertise, Carla was stuck in the same impossible position many other parents find themselves in: dismissed, doubted, and running out of options.

"I was really clear with Learning DNA: just tell me if I'm pathologising him and he is normal," Carla says. "And obviously when they gave him his diagnosis, it was massive because I knew that no, I was right. I wasn't just a paranoid mum."

Finding Learning DNA

At 3:00 in the morning during one sleepless night, Carla found herself googling for support. That's when she discovered Learning DNA and the 360 assessment that doesn’t require school input initially.

"For me that was absolutely amazing because we've just been turned down by so many professionals who didn't even want to look at him and didn't want to understand what we were going through and how hard it is for Jake himself, but for us as a family," Carla shares.

The conversation with Learning DNA was different from the start. The staff member Carla spoke with was "absolutely lovely," sharing that Jake exhibited many behaviours similar to her own son who had ADHD. She talked Carla through the process, explaining they'd meet Jake and assess him from a holistic perspective.

Comprehensive 360 Assessment

Carla booked the 360 assessment with an open mind, though she wasn't entirely sure what to expect. She was pleasantly surprised by the thoroughness of the evaluation.

"I wasn't anticipating they'd look at dyslexia and things. I just thought they'd be looking for those ADHD and ASD symptomology signs, but they did a really, really thorough look," Carla explains. Being dyslexic and dyspraxic herself, she recognised many of the tests. "Actually, I was really grateful for that as well because it kind of helped us understand whether there was anything more going on with Jake."

The assessment revealed Jake had traits of autism alongside ADHD. "I was actually quite taken back by that because I thought ‘that fits’, but I didn't even think about it. I just was so heavily focused on ADHD".

Perhaps most significantly for the family, Learning DNA diagnosed Jake at age six, something that's unusual but proved crucial for getting support systems in place before he started struggling even more at school.

Movement Therapy Journey

Following the 360, Learning DNA recommended psychological input, movement therapy, and both autism and ADHD assessments. Carla prioritised the ADHD assessment and movement therapy, despite initial scepticism about the latter.

"I'd never heard of it. Is this really going to make a difference?" Carla wondered. "But I thought, anything has got to be better than nothing. It's about Jake's quality of life. I want him to succeed. That's all I want as a parent."

The flexibility of the movement therapy proved transformative. Online sessions, adapted to a parent-led model with weekly check-ins, made all the difference.

"If you were really rigid and prescriptive with that, Jake wouldn't do it. It would have just been a waste of time, a waste of money. But because it’s been so flexible with how we do it, actually, it's really helped," Carla explains.

Real, Measurable Changes

When school restarted and transitions caused temporary setbacks, Learning DNA provided crucial support. "They’ve been really supportive. They put a clear rationale on it and helped guide me through, just to give me that reassurance," Carla shares.

As part of his movement therapy, the Swiss ball has become Jake's go-to tool. "He literally just gravitates towards it now. It's like the best thing he has. I couldn't ever imagine taking that away from him now."

The Validation That Matters

Despite support from Jake’s school still not forthcoming, Carla no longer feels alone in fighting the battle to support Jake.

"Learning DNA has made the journey a lot easier. I haven't felt alone, and they found workarounds with the school which have been brilliant," Carla reflects. "For me, it's been a really, really positive experience with them. I couldn't fault them."

Carla's Advice to Other Parents

"Trust your parental intuition. You know your child. I work in assessing children for these conditions, but when it came to my own son, I still needed professionals to tell me I wasn't just being a paranoid mum," Carla emphasises.

"The fact that Learning DNA doesn't require school input for the initial 360 assessment is massive. So many of us get turned away because schools won't support the referral, even when they're constantly complaining about behaviour. Learning DNA actually looks at your child, really looks at them from every angle."

For families hesitant about therapies like movement therapy that they've never heard of: "I'd never heard of it either. I Googled it, did my research, and honestly, I thought 'let's just take a chance.' And it's worked. The flexibility they showed in adapting to Jake's needs has been massive."

Carla's journey with Jake demonstrates that even when you work in the field, you can still feel dismissed and ignored. Learning DNA provided what years of traditional routes couldn't: comprehensive assessment, accurate diagnosis, flexible therapeutic support, and the validation that as a parent, she was right to trust her instincts all along.