BIG BUDDY, BIG HELP! ‘I thank the universe for Pat!'

A single mum reached out and was rewarded with perfect role model

- Kasia Jillings

Devoted mother Bronwen Tollan and her 12-year-old son Andre have been through a lot together – including a congenital heart condition, and a diagnosis of both ADHD and autism.

It’s been relentless at times, but Bronwen knows it’s all worth it for her much longed for child, who took seven years to conceive and was born three weeks early with a blocked pulmonary artery.

“He’s had a lot of trials for someone his age, but he’s my everything,” says the South Auckland mum, 54, who always knew there was something special about Andre. “He went through a phase where he was obsessed with signs. He could read from three years old, so I would have signs everywhere in the lounge, and he would go round and read them over and over,” she recalls.

Due to his heart condition, Andre had endured four open-heart surgeries by the age of eight and when he was seven, he was officially diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a condition that can cause unusual levels of hyperactivity and impulsive behaviours.

Following that was the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which can cause significant social, communication and behavioural challenges.