Andrew

Andrew is a happy and inquisitive boy who is constantly exploring his world and finding things to laugh about. His social interactions were different from a very young age and he was slightly delayed on most milestones, but not enough to concern his pediatrician. By 15 months it was clear to everyone that his language development and interactions with other people were not progressing normally and he entered the state’s early intervention program. He was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at 20 months and whole exome sequencing identified a SHANK2 variant a few months later. Andrew is still figuring out where this journey will take him, but he makes consistent steady gains in skills across all areas. He recently got an AAC device to help him communicate and he has been greatly enjoying asking to “eat” and for “mommy.” Some of Andrew’s favorite activities are hiking and doing puzzles.