Cool to be Kool

Cool to be Kool Behind the scenes of Colby Tiberg.

Colby Tiberg is a 16 year old sophomore who attends AHS. Colby has a syndrome called Koolen-de Vries Syndrome. He has trouble with his speech, has weak muscle tone, has high pain tolerance and much more. He was the second child in the U.S. to be diagnosed at the age of 4 in 2007.

Colby participates in karate with our dad. He is currently a red belt (2 belts from black). He was told that he was never going to be able to walk or talk but now he is moving up the ranks in a super difficult sport and working to his full potential.

One of Colby's favorite things to do is give anyone a high five or fist bump, especially his peers.

As much as Colby likes giving high fives, he does not like being told what to do. His attitude at school and at home are completely different. When he is told what to do, he always puts up his finger until he feels like doing what you tell him to do. Colby also struggles with social skills. He likes to repeat himself and can be socially awkward depending on the person and situation. He has a fight or flight instinct and in a situation that he doesn't want to be in, he either tries to change the subject or he gets aggressive. His face turns red and he tenses up.

Colby also has chores at home like taking care of our bird, Digger.

Since Colby was a baby, he has always had to be on medication. As a toddler and young teenager, he had to be on seizure medicine but he was weaned off of it as he got older. He is now just on acid reflux medicine and a medicine that helps him sleep.

Another one of Colby's favorite things to do is spend time with our dog, Neo. As a younger child, he had no interest in animals or being around them, but in the past few months, he has grown to like animals and to be more affectionate toward them.

Appreciate