Phil's Story

Young Phil is the first child of Philip Bertino and Elizabeth Acquah. His conception and birth were without complications and the latter took place in a medical facility. He was a healthy young boy as he grew up with no sign of abnormality.

Officially, Phil was six years when we got to know his condition was autism. Though he was able to pronounce some 1 to 3 letter words from one and half years, all these were almost gone by age 2. He could only make unintelligible sounds that no one could decipher. He became very hyperactive and could not concentrate on anything. He was also energetic and in his own world as he preferred to play alone. He also had poor sleeping habits and touch problems among others.

At age 3, we thought it was a medical condition so we took him to Korle-Bu teaching Hospital for examination where we were advised to enroll him on a speech therapy. He enrolled for six months and with no progress coupled with the cost, we stopped. We also visited a number of spiritual facilities for help but that too did not work. We continued to observe him hoping all would be over soon. We also took him to Akai Clinic for examination and brain scan. The report given was that, there was no abnormality but they suspect autism.

At age six, someone mentioned Achimota Assessment Center to us so we sent him there for assessment. After a long interview with the experts, they mentioned to us that his condition was autism. This was the point where we got to know exactly what was happening to Young Phil.

How has the journey been when you got to know he is autistic?

Knowledge of Phil’s condition and the fact that it has no cure put us into tears as we realized all our dreams for him had come to an end.
We consulted a number of people for advice and we were led to one professor who claimed he had a cure. We paid for the registration fee at GHS1,000.00 and after using his expensive imported supplements for some time with no results, we quitted.
We also tried a herbal clinic. Though we saw some sort of improvement over there, the effect on the autism symptoms was minimal.
At some point, we became frustrated and gave up. Within that time, Phil’s symptoms became more prominent so we started conducting extensive research on available remedies across the globe.
Liztino came across a touch-based remedy which she applied and it worked leading to Phil’s recovery.
This led to the formation of Liztino Center for Children with Special Needs to help parents having autistic children.

What are some of the challenges you encountered?

Some of the challenges Phil’s condition presented to us during his days with autism include:

Speech;- He could not express himself verbally and could not understand anything said to him.
Hyperactive;- Phil could not sit down for a moment or concentrate on any subject.
Attention deficit;- He was easily distracted and could not focus on one thing at a time
Get missing;- He sometimes left home unnoticed and get missing, on one of such instances, we found Phil the next day after getting missing.
Fright: He feared certain colours and objects and dared not go closer of touch them.
Memory issues: He could not remember what he is taught the next minute, he was also absent minded.
Social life;- In the public place, Phil would cover his face and get withdrawn.
Sleep;- He did not use to sleep at night and we could hear him making sounds even at mid night.
Constipation;- He was having frequent constipation
Abuse;- People did not understand him and used to abuse him. The fact that he could not express himself verbally made it worse as he could not explain what has happened to him.
Academic work;- He had to change five schools within a short time as teachers and school authorities found it difficult to cope with his disturbing conditions
Others;- He was afraid of using the shower, going to the washroom, shaving the hair especially with clippers

What are some of the improvements and his success stories?

The symptoms of autism stated above have all gradually vanished
Our stress as parents have been significantly eliminated
Phil is virtually independent
He has developed interests in cycling and has undertaken various trips over long distances to create autism awareness
He has become an autism ambassador and has appeared in a number of newspapers.

Special Interests

Swimming

Young Phil was introduced to swimming when he was seven (7) years. At that time he could only enter the pool and cling to the ladder at the entry. He was afraid of the water and could only dip his legs. All efforts to get Phil into the pool did not yield any result. This continued for about four years when he began to gradually step into the pool. He now has a trainer, Daniel assisted by David Asamoah Agyei who have improved Phil’s swimming skills and is now able to step into the pool and swim normally.

We introduced Phil to swimming because, it can help children on the autism spectrum improve speech, social skills, self-esteem, sensory and cognitive processing.

Cycling

Young Phil was always enthusiastic whenever he saw people cycling. In 2017, his Mum bought him a bicycle and his two siblings helped him sit on it whiles they push. He could not use the pedal then. On the weekends, his father was also training him ride on a nearby field. In order to encourage him ride, bicycles were obtained for his siblings to ride along with him.

One of his teachers, Kevin, took over the training for some time in the later part of 2018. In the same year, Isaac Sackey trained Phil and siblings in the Legon botanical gardens. David Asamoah Agyei was always with Phil taking his pictures and videos. His performance improved and he could ride over longer distances. In the later part of 2020, David Asamoah Agyei, one of the key staff of Liztino introduced Young Phil to Joshua Gbedemah (Ajony) and Abdul Rahman who took over the cycling training of Young Phil to date.

Long Tennis

Phil was further introduced to long tennis to increase his auditory, concentration and visual processing skills. One of his sports teachers by name Richard trained Phil when he was in class 5. Young Phil picked up slowly and it took him a while to be able to follow the rules. He trained at the Atomic Tennis Court but was later abandoned by his trainer who could not make time for him anymore. Young Phil had to quit learning tennis over a period and it was only in 2021 when we got another trainer for Him. He has picked up and he has progressed significantly.

Cycling Trips Undertaken

Phil’s first cycling trip was an 81km ride from Adenta to Boti Falls in a company of Eagle riders in October 2019. This was a difficult trip with several high mountains along the way but Young Phil was able to make it. He undertook a second cycling trip from Adenta to Shai Hills with Eagle Ridders in 2020, a journey of 56km. Both of these trips were covered by GTV Sports+ who were Phil’s main sponsor. He also joined the Gladiators to ride from Sogakope to Ho in 2021, a journey of 84km. He also created his third awareness on April 2022. Young Phil and a group of cyclists cycled from Adenta in the Greater Accra Region to Nyanyano in the Central Region to meet the chiefs and over 1500 students to donate books, pens, and calendars for the schools. In all these trips, David Asamoah Agyei was with him covering his pictures and videos.

Throughout this period of cycling, Phil has improved in his ASD symptoms. Typically, we have seen positive effects on his sensory integration, motor skills, self-confidence and balance.

Others:

In addition to swimming, long tennis and cycling, Young Phil occasionally undertakes other sporting activities to keep him fit. These are brisk walking, jogging and stretching