Gilgandra's Sarah Johnston praises Canobolas Kids Physio at Orange for helping son Ted walk

The story of Ted Johnston dates back to early 2019, when he was diagnosed with Angelman Syndrome, a genetic disorder which causes delayed development, problems with speech and balance, intellectual disability, and, sometimes, seizures.

Ever since then, his mother, Sarah Johnston, has fought tooth and nail to give him the best life possible.

"Our journey has been one where, we're really quite isolated out on a farm in Gilgandra," she said.

"We're 100km from Dubbo and paediatric physios that have a neurological approach are very few and far between."

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After years of physiotherapy, it was a trip to the NAPA rehabilitation centre in Sydney which really opened Ms Johnston's eyes.

"I really learnt what was needed for Ted through that journey. It showed me what he needs, which is really unknown out here in the bush," Ms Johnston added.

"Through that, I really understood the need for a technique called dynamic movement intervention. I started hot on the trail of finding a paediatric physiotherapist that offered DMI."

Through her sister, she was pointed in the direction of Canobolas Kids Physio in Orange.

Ms Johnston would make a call to one of the directors at Canobolas Kids, Eden Bradford, to see if there was any space to fit them in.

"She really worked with us and clicked with who I was and who Ted was," she added.

That was in June of 2022 and the partnership could not have gone better in the seven months since.

"Building that relationship and rapport with the families and with them is something that's really important to us," Ms Bradford said.

"We're really family-focused, so we make sure the goals are set to them and what they need to make their lives easier."

One of the first moments that Ms Johnston knew it was going to be a good partnership was early on in the process, when Ms Bradford helped source a bike for Ted.

"We took him down for a trial and as soon as she put him on it, he started riding," Ms Johnston said.

"This was a child who we thought may never walk, standing up and pushing the pedals down."

Two straight weeks of intensive physiotherapy followed and the Johnston's were all in. But low and behold, things got better from there when fellow physio Courtney Johnson joined the Canobolas Kids team.

"Courtney found space to attend Dubbo once a week and service clients out there, so I jumped at the chance and we've been seeing her for six months now," Ms Johnston added.

"We've found our physio. She holds the key to what I've been looking for. It's a niche area and it's something that just isn't about physiotherapy. You can't just walk into a physiotherapist with a child with a rare disease and start doing exercise."

But it was a moment in January which had everyone as excited as they could be. Up until that day, Ted, who is now four years old, was yet to walk independently in his life.

"We were just trying to practice some standing balance by himself and he did some really good stands independently," Ms Johnson said.

"Sarah got her phone out to video that and all of a sudden he wanted to walk and explore. I could feel him being nice and sturdy and took a chance of removing my hands and he just kept going. It was not planned at all. It was amazing."

Ted had taken his first steps on his own.

"I got a little bit emotional when it all happened," Ms Johnson added.

"I see the journey and I see the hard work that Sarah has put in and that Ted puts in, it's just so overwhelming and exciting. I know there's been so much work done prior to what we've done, so obviously a huge credit to everyone who was there before we started to do our stuff."

Both of the Canobolas Kids physios were quick to praise Ms Johnston for all the years of work she had put in to getting Ted to this moment, while also revelling in the moment.

"That's why we're in this job," Ms Bradford said of Ted's first steps.

"It's what makes us happy and it's the best part of the job. It makes it easy coming to work every day when you see things like that."

Although Ted was able to walk on his own on that occasion, it does not necessarily mean he will ever be able to repeat it.

That is why for Ms Johnston and all the physios involved in making that magic moment happen, it is back to the drawing board as they continue to push to make that next step happen, no matter how small or how big.

"It really came out of the blue when he did take those couple of steps," Ms Johnston said.

"We're working the exact same way every day now, regardless that he's done it unassisted.

"It's such a valuable service for us to have found."

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