Harry was six years old when he began experiencing catatonia in April 2025. His family brought him to a Boston-based children’s hospital, where the next several months were filled with uncertainty, questions, and the urgent need to understand what was happening to him.

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Harry’s catatonia resembled profound autism. He became practically non-verbal and seemed to lose many of his skills almost overnight. To help doctors understand the severity of the change, his parents showed videos of Harry before catatonia—speaking, engaging, and showing his vibrant personality. These videos helped establish who Harry had been before his condition changed him so dramatically.

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At one point, a pediatrician suggested that Harry’s family consider schizophrenia, despite his young age and lack of prior psychiatric history. Rebecca spoke up when that explanation did not seem right, which helped lead to Harry being assigned a complex care team. Although some doctors at the hospital had experience with catatonia, Harry's case underscored how easily catatonia can be misunderstood or misattributed, even in major medical settings.

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The treatment that ultimately helped Harry recover was electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). At first, the possibility of ECT was shocking to his family, largely because of how misunderstood and stigmatized it remains. In Massachusetts, ECT is generally only legal for children ages 13 and older, so Harry’s family and care team had to seek permission from the state for him to receive treatment. Harry became the youngest person in Massachusetts to receive ECT.

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ECT brought Harry back to his family. He is now his chatty, silly, precocious self again—asking questions, sharing information, and re-engaging with the world around him. His story shows why catatonia must be recognized in children, why families’ observations matter, and why access to effective treatment can change the course of a child’s life.