For the first 8 months of her life, Isabella was growing and developing like a typical infant. But then her life changed in an instant. At just 9 months old, Isabella was diagnosed with brain cancer.
The shocking diagnosis was life-changing for her parents, Rachael and Bruce.
“From 9-to-15 -months of age, Isabella was in the hospital,” recalls Rachael. “Her treatment included multiple brain surgeries, radiation, chemotherapy, and intense respiratory care/support. Isabella was sedated and received extensive life support for much of this six-month journey. This was a very scary time for our family.”
Every day brought new fears and challenges for the first-time parents. After so much time on life support and being sedated, along with so much neurological intervention, they had no idea what Isabella might be able to do when she woke up. Around two months into her treatment, Isabella got a tracheostomy, which allowed her to still have breathing support, without being sedated. This is where they first discovered the power of birth-to-three therapy.
“During her stay at Seattle Children’s Hospital, Isabella underwent rehabilitation therapy with physical therapists, speech therapists, and occupational therapists, daily,” said Rachael. “Even though she had spent eight weeks in the rehabilitation unit at Children’s, her time with therapists was far from over. Upon her return home to Spokane, our 15-month-old Isabella could not hold her head up in tummy time, she could not sit on her own, could not crawl, walk, eat, or even speak. Life looked very different than we had once imagined. This is when we began with Joya.”
With the help of her Joya team, she started to thrive.
Isabella learned to sit up on her own. She started communicating with American Sign Language (ASL) and by pointing to pictures or icons. She started to stand holding onto the couch, then cruising, then holding herself up with her forearms. Little by little she regained every single skill she once had, and so much more. Isabella had her tracheostomy removed in September 2025, and within weeks, she was talking.
“Joya has been amazing to work with,” said Bruce. “Miranda (physical therapist) and Erin (speech therapist) came into our home during a very difficult time and gave us a ton of assistance. Eating has been a very long journey for Isabella but being able to support her in our own home for therapies has made a huge difference.”
As Isabella gets ready to turn three her parents are so proud of all she has accomplished. And so grateful to have Joya by their side.
“Having a child who is different can sometimes feel like living on an island,” said Bruce and Rachael. “Miranda and Erin, and everyone at Joya, has completely changed that for us. We used to be fearful of the future, fearful of getting out of the house with her, and had a great uncertainty of what the next few months or years would bring. With the help of Joya, Isabella has grown in many skills, and is showing us things we wondered if we would ever see. We could not have done it without Joya.”
