I promised I would give a weekly update on our journey with medical cannabis for our severely autistic son. We are 14 days in! In Minnesota, medical cannabis was legalized for autism in July 2018. The program is regulated by the state of Minnesota. You can read more HERE about how we got started. Want to know if medical cannabis is legal for autism in your state? Click HERE. After getting a prescription from his doctor and jumping through all the hoops, we started him on the lowest dose possible.…
I’ve scoured so many posts, blogs, and advice columns looking for moms like me. The moms who still struggle with the diagnosis. Moms who still wake up in the middle of the night unable to breathe, and moms who doubt everything they thought they knew. I look for moms like me, who have been crushed by the weight of autism. It’s been ten long years. Nothing has soothed these wounds. I’ve tried. I’ve tried different therapies. Antidepressants. Christianity. Wine. Way too much wine. No one seems to understand what this…
I am blessed with a daughter who has a large vocabulary and clear dictation. She can read fluently and make up complex sentences. She can remember accurate facts about things and repeat these readily. She can make choices, recall events and express her opinion. As a result of all of the above it is assumed (wrongly) that her autism is mild, has limited impact on her life and something to be of little concern about. People are too quick to assume if a child is verbal that everything is fine.…
Dear Influential Teacher, I know what it’s like to live in a bubble of the typical. A typical day, a typical child, a typical life. I know what it’s like to go through the year, losing the will to invest in the kids we have trouble connecting with…those who aren’t self-motivated, involved, and actively engaged in the lesson…those who don’t see us giving our all, lesson after lesson, paper cuts, ink stains, broken copy machines, fire drills, back talk, and all. I know what it’s like to overlook those who…
I had always dreamed of having many children. For the longest time my magic number was six. As I grew older, the number changed but I still wanted at least three kids. And my husband felt the same way. We married young and spent our first few years just having fun. We wanted to wait a few years before we started our family. A few years into our marriage we were surprised with my pregnancy. But we were so happy. We were finally living our dream of having a family.…
I had a dream a few weeks ago that I’ve never had, and have thought about ever since. You woke up and sat at the end of the kitchen table with me while I was drinking my coffee. I asked you how you slept and you answered me. You asked me to make you breakfast, and we sat and talked without an iPad screen between us. You told me about your friends at school and how you think the little blonde girl in your class from last year likes you…
I was swallowed into the autism pit and it almost destroyed every relationship in my life. I became so caught up in my grief that I began to become bitter towards my friends and their children’s growth. Seeing their accomplishments devastated me. I would become resentful listening to them ‘complain’ about running their kids around or how many activities they were in., etc. I would snap at them saying, ‘at least you aren’t spending your Saturday’s in therapy.’ I stopped answering the phone and they eventually stopped calling. It drove…
I promised I would give a weekly update on our journey with medical cannabis for our severely autistic son. We are 9 days in! In Minnesota, medical cannabis was legalized for autism in July 2019. The program is regulated by the state of Minnesota. You can read more HERE about how we got started. After getting a prescription from his doctor and jumping through all the hoops, we started him on the lowest dose possible. Our dispensary offers three blends of medical cannabis. Think of it as three strengths. We…
A time will come on this journey when your autistic child will make someone uncomfortable. Like really visibly uncomfortable. Maybe you are in line at the grocery store. Or in a waiting room at a doctor’s office. Or at a park. And your child will be flapping, running, grunting and loving life, just being happy, and you will see people move away from them. You will see stares. You will see looks. I want to tell you that how you react in that very moment is a really big deal.…
My son, So many changes are happening at our house right now. Your brother is starting kindergarten in three days. You are getting a new brother in five weeks. We are still settling into our new house. And yet, with you and I, nothing has changed. We are still inseparable. I am still your person. I’ve spent time today thinking about my role as your mama. And your brothers. Sawyer is five going on fifteen. He is social. He has so many friends. Many whom ring our doorbell daily. I…
