jj

Julian

Age 1, Washington

Meet Julien. Julien (aka JJ) is a ball of sunshine! He loves to laugh and dance. He spends his days crawling after his big brother and snuggling with his family who adore him. JJ also has translocation Down syndrome and was born with a congenital heart defect. He uses an NG tube for liquids, is followed closely by a cardiology team, and gets early intervention services (occupational, physical, and feeding therapies) to gain strength and skills.  

JJ’s mom, Kayla says: “We get our healthcare through the state of Washington (ACA health care exchanges) for both of our boys and we are SO grateful that it’s been an option for us to do that. If we lost that as an option, JJ’s ongoing care would be astronomical. He has had 4 heart surgeries in his year and a half long life and needs continued care to stay alive and healthy, much less to be at his best which is what early intervention services help with.”

Submitted by Kayla, JJ’s mom