My Heart Hero Sidekick Finn
Finn and I are two peas in a pod. Everyone always sees photos of our family and says that my oldest is exactly like my husband and my youngest is exactly like me. This is not only true in looks but personality as well. I spend a tad more time with my youngest Finn because while his brother Mason is in school and Finn attends therapy three times a week. My little side kick and I have PT, OT and speech during the week. 
It's an overwhelming - but fun - commitment but we always have our lovey as the third wheel in case Finn gets frustrated and a little snuggling needs to happen! His Baby Jack Learning Lovey serves as an all time therapy tool as he plays with the ribbon tags for added stimulation and comfort.
We are Baby Jack LOYALS and have had loveys from the very beginning. We encourage all our friends and followers to grab one as a child's gift since it is a toy / security blanket and KIND brand wrapped in one! We love sharing the story of our loveys and how they impact Finn's life and feel great that they can be brought along for a therapy tool during his appointments.
Physical Therapy (PT) is tough because we have to push his abilities to see how far he can go. Pushing him also helps us determine why and what areas he struggles in. Is he struggling because he probably is tired because of his heart? Or is he just frustrated because he wants to do it but he can’t? Or is he just being a temperamental three year old lol. When we push the limit we are able to have these questions answered based on his responses. It can definitely be mentally exhausting and I always feel bad when he is upset. 
Speech is tough because Finn has horrible oral aversion. He had a giant panic attack when the therapist put a strawberry on his plate the meeting after our evaluation and it brought back a lot of PTSD for me (and him) remembering times of panic in the hospital after surgeries. More cry sessions and some anxiety = lots of mommy snuggles with our lovey. 
OT is totally his friend and he always thinks it’s a game. Don’t get me wrong, he absolutely loves going to all of these therapies! And if we can’t go for whatever reason, he always misses his therapist and experience! But it’s definitely a struggle at times and it’s a lot of work. Whatever we practice in the sessions we have to implement at home. Learning all things takes time, patience and persistence! 
The main theme to this is comfort and trust, mainly building trust with his body! He has all of these triggers that he doesn’t understand why he has, so we have to be very careful with that. Just with any child, boundaries need to be tested but we always need to come back to some type of comfort so that he knows that he is in a safe place. Having familiar things around like his mom, pacifiers and lovey always help bring him back to a breathable space. It’s a high mountain but it’s an attainable one - baby Finn steps one day at a time!READ MORE STORIES FROM PARENTS!
