Navigating Misdiagnosis: Imaan Parker’s Story

Background – 

“Imaan was born at 28 weeks weighing 555g. All her milestones were on par for her age except walking, which was delayed. We really thought she was going to be very smart as she was identifying letters and numbers as soon as she could speak. But at the age of 9 things took a turn, she struggled at school, teachers said she was distracted, she was no longer emotionally on par with her peers and everything went downhill. She was bullied at school and she was not a happy child anymore.”

-Imaan’s Mom

How did you feel before you came to us? –

“I struggled at school and I struggled to wake up in the mornings even though I was getting 10-12 hours of sleep at night. I did not have friends either.”

-Imaan Parker

How did it affect your quality of life? –

“I was wearing braces and the day the braces were removed my teeth started moving and my retainers were breaking. I was depressed and thought something was wrong with me because my peers were all way more mature than I was. I was bullied and called a baby. I worked very hard but my results would not reflect it. This made me even more depressed and I developed anxiety when I had to write exams. So the teachers let me write alone to reduce my anxiety but that did not help at all either.”

-Iman Parker

The AirWayHealth Approach –

“Dr. Shahnaz and her team realized that I had a tongue tie, tongue thrust, reverse swallow, and a mouth breather. I checked all the boxes. She immediately started doing Orofacial Myofunctional therapy on me to correct the Oral Dysfunction. After my jaw went back she started me on Myobrace treatment. I had my tongue tie released and had bodywork to alleviate the tension caused by the tongue tie. I saw a lot of practitioners and had to put in a lot of work.”

-Iman Parker

Results – 

“Now I can comfortably breathe through my nose, I sleep better and wake up refreshed and my grades and social life have improved. Who would have thought that the way I breathed and swallowed would affect my life that much! My teeth are stable and I don’t even wear retainers. My life has improved in every way since my therapy.”

– Imaan Parker

How have things changed since you came to us? –

Imaan is currently doing her GED and wants to study Early Childhood Education. She feels that as an educator she will be able to identify the issues she had as a child and hopefully refer and make a difference in other kids’ lives.