Early in the new year, Enna Doyle posted a photo on Instagram of herself doing yoga. It was a beautiful image but the message she wrote to accompany it was even more moving.
Speaking directly to fellow mothers of children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnosis, she encouraged them to join her in adding a few extra moments of self-care in the new year. “We share in a journey that requires so much additional love, patience and internal strength,” she wrote.
Inspired by her words, we asked Enna, who teaches yoga throughout the Madison area and raises her two sons — thirteen-year-old Maddox and nine-year-old Gavin — in Oregon, to elaborate on her thoughtful post.
How did you get into yoga?
My family dynamic changed after going through a divorce a few years ago and I wanted to encourage my own personal health and wellness along with that of others. This ultimately lead me to the two-hundred-hour certified yoga teacher training program at Dragonfly Hot Yoga. I truly believe certain events happen for a reason and ultimately change your life for the better. Going through the yoga teacher training program was definitely one of those times in my life! Nurturing my body, mind and soul became a priority rather than a luxury. I was so fortunate to do this alongside the most amazing group of yogis/omies!
Why do you practice and teach yoga?
The entire yoga culture gives me such joy. It helps to clear my mind and stretch my body and creates a sense of calm within me that is priceless. Interacting with others and helping them discover these same benefits is even more rewarding for me. My absolute favorite is leading the yoga section of the move-a-thon program at Brooklyn Elementary School and Rome Corners Intermediate School. Children are expected to accomplish so much more at a young age now and it is very important to encourage them to be mindful of their health early on in life.
Please tell us about your sons. What are they like and what are they into?
Maddox is the definition of sweet. More often than not he is blissfully in a bubble of happiness, which is very rare as a soon-to-be teenager. Maddox has maintained this lighthearted spirited despite all of the struggles that he has faced. Maddox was diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) at a very young age. He is non-verbal and utilizes two different assistive communication apps on his iPad (Proloquo2go and Predictable) along with fingerspelling to communicate. Maddox’s spirit animal must be a fish, as he lives to swim. I enrolled him in private swimming lessons for safety as a toddler and he was hooked! He requests “waterpark” and “swimming” on a daily basis. Maddox participates in therapeutic riding lessons at Three Gaits Therapeutic Horsemanship Center and Special Needs gymnastics at Gymfinity. He also loves climbing, indoor trampoline parks, puzzles and anything Disney/Pixar-related.
When Maddox was just over three years old, we were blessed with our second son, Gavin Liam. Gavin has charmed his way into everyone’s hearts from day one! He was known as baby Elvis at the hospital due to his sparkly brown eyes and endless amounts of dark hair. Gavin is an extremely kind little boy. He is such a social butterfly and makes friends everywhere we go. At the core he is an old soul and when he was in pre-K he was a peer model for children with special needs. He is my biggest helper and I’m truly grateful for the support and the flexibility he displays with his older brother. Gavin loves many group sports activities. This year he has participated in soccer, karate, basketball and baseball. It was his first year participating in choir and he shined bright at his first concert this winter.
What are your favorite things to do together as a family?
Maintaining an active family life is extremely important to me. As a boy mom in Wisconsin, you learn quickly to seek out as many cold-weather indoor activities as possible. We are very lucky to live in the Madison area, which is full of family-friendly activities. Many places offer sensory-friendly nights and/or times where lighting and sounds are muted and participation is limited in order to minimize crowds. A few of our favorites include: SwimWest Swim School, Skyzone, PlayNWisconsin, Legacy Academy, Marcus Theatres, Madison Children’s Museum, Vitenese Golf, Ten Pin Alley, Holiday Inn Madison West and the Oregon Pool. During the summer months we love visiting the Henry Vilas Zoo, swimming at Troll Beach, renting kayaks at Wingra Boats and enjoying all of our local area parks.
Could you please tell us about your son’s diagnosis? How has this journey been, both for you and him?
Our sweetest Maddox was diagnosed with ASD after we witnessed a complete digression of his speech and language skills, total avoidance of social interaction, severe digestive issues and repetitive patterns of activities and daily self-stimulatory behaviors. As a family we started our long journey of establishing Maddox’s referral network. The very real truth is that it requires an immense amount of patience and love and a very strong dose of persistence to get through this process. First, we needed to get a referral from our primary care physician for Maddox to be seen by a neurologist. This took what seemed like forever, as we ended up going to three separate neurologists prior to receiving Maddox’s final diagnosis of ASD.
Here is a very hard lesson in reality: In order for your child to receive the services he or she absolutely needs, you must as a parent let go of any stigmas that you had personally associated with that diagnosis. As a mother who has gone through this process, I know how deeply important it is to focus solely on enhancing your kiddo’s life. For me, this meant letting other people’s judgements fade into the background. It all just becomes white noise that doesn’t serve any positive purpose in our lives.
Once we had his diagnosis, we could then start helping and healing our sweet boy. We networked back to our primary care physician to get the referral for the Birth to 3 Program. This program works to enhance children’s development and offers tons of great support aspects for the entire family. Every opportunity we had to increase Maddox’s referral and care network, we took it. After being on a substantial wait list, Maddox then qualified for the in-home, full-time intensive therapy program offered through the Wisconsin Early Autism Project (WEAP). Throughout the last ten years, we have also incorporated numerous alternative therapies such as hyperbaric treatments, dietary management, supplementation, brain-based therapy, play-based therapy, hippo-therapy, chiropractic services and more. This list is very long, and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat for him, and more. CI Pediatric Therapy Centers and Common Threads Family Resource Center both hold such a dear place in my heart. The amazing therapeutic teams at both centers have helped Maddox advance into the amazing young man that he has become today. We continue to work side by side with the school district to provide Maddox with the daily support he needs as he enters into adolescence. He has been blessed with amazing paraprofessionals, special education teachers, therapeutic school staff and peers.
How does yoga help with some of the challenges of being a mom of a child with special needs? What else do you do to take care of yourself?
I have used yoga as a tool in creating a better life balance. Finding a calm space inside myself has been the key. Often in our yoga practices we refer to releasing negativity that resides within us. The stress and strain of care-taking for another human being is exhausting and requires a tremendous amount of inner strength.
I encourage everyone to practice walking up every day forward with the intention to set aside time to focus on your personal health and wellness. Even if this is just simply five minutes alone in your vehicle, your bathroom or wherever you can find space and silence. Take these five minutes to breathe and acknowledge the amazing job that you do every day. Never lose sight of the fact that you matter. You are simply incredible!
Photos by Reilly Images.