“Jack is a very determined, resilient, brave, and strong-willed little guy. We know these amazing traits will follow him through life.”
Meet Jack Dickson. Jack lives in Katikati with his big sister Isla, his Mum (Beth), and Dad (Brad) on a 3-hectare avocado orchard. Jack is a super cute, super cheeky 2-year-old boy with some extra challenges in his life.
Jack was born at Bethlehem Birthcare Centre in August 2021. Beth says they were fortunate enough to have a straightforward pregnancy and birth. Jack was born, healthy and happy. At around 6 months old Beth noticed his right hand was always in a tight fist and his arm was a rigid 90 degree angle against his body. They noticed it progressively getting more obvious and at 8 months old in May 2022 at a Doctors visit they were advised to go to hospital straight away. Thinking Jack had hurt himself in some way their medical journey began.
Many tests, x-rays, ultrasounds and specialists later, the MRI confirmed Jack had suffered a stroke, they assume in utero which resulted in a brain bleed on the right side of his brain. Beth and Brad were told Jack has left side hemiplegia cerebral palsy and also a rare porencephalic cyst in space of the brain damage.
Jack became a member of BICT in March 2023 and at that time he couldnt crawl, hated being on all fours, couldnt weight bear on his left arm or hand and didnt stand for long or walk along furniture. Now – only a few short months later – Jack can do all of these things thanks to his neuro developmental therapy programme and the support of BICT.
Jack’s mobility is vastly improved and it allows him and his whanau to participate more fully in their community and improve their quality of life.
“The hardest part of this journey has been the unknown. We are learning new things each week. New challenges and issues constantly arise for Jack. We are trying our absolute best and doing everything we can to ensure he has the best possible life. We have been told Jack will reach his milestones, it will just take a lot of therapy, time, and patience.”
– Beth Dickson
