Posts Tagged ‘autism in girls’
My Girl had Gotten out of the House
I am one of those people, even before kids, but even more so with kids, I immediately think of the worst that could happen in every situation, and then I try to do everything humanly possible to keep those things from happening. I know lots of mom’s and people like this, and then I have friends who are so laid back about things that I wonder how many milligrams they are taking a day! I absolutely have days where this instinct is less active than others, but for the most…
Read MoreNo One Talks About Group Homes
I have this recurring dream. I don’t have it very often, but I have it enough to recognize it through the years. In it, I’m alone in a vast ocean. The sea has picked up and I’m treading water with my head barely above the waterline. The waves occasionally crash over me and I come up gasping for air. There is no thought involved in this, I just tread water automatically with a tinge of desperation, struggling to keep my head or sometimes even just my mouth above water so…
Read MoreWhy did this happen to us?
My husband and I often ask ourselves, “Why did this happen to us?” Is there a lesson that the universe is trying to teach us by giving us two children on the autism spectrum? Tonight, I think I figured it out after I attended two holiday parties. At the first party, I finally got closure about losing a friend after she made explicit comments. She thinks my child doesn’t have autism because she is not intellectually delayed and makes eye contact. My child has behavior issues (not autism) and needs…
Read MoreA Simple Card
Last night I did the usual unpacking of my daughter’s school bag, emptied her lunch kit and read her commination book to see how her day was. As I was going through her stuff, I noticed a card ‘’To Mom’’ which threw me as she calls me Jennifer. I opened it up and it was a Christmas card Kya had made for me. I burst into tears. To me it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. It was also the very first card from Kya. As a…
Read MoreShe is Perfect
Our little girl sat and looked at our dog whilst laughing and moved in a way I had never seen her move before. That was the moment I knew. We had suspected from the age of two that our little girl could be on the spectrum but she was still young and needed more time. I hadn’t felt sadness about it until that moment. Tears rolled down my cheeks. They were tears of sadness because I knew things would be more difficult for her and it wasn’t her fault. Was…
Read MoreTo My Husband, My Daughter’s Advocate
Saying that I am ‘thankful’ for you, my husband, doesn’t quite feel right. I am thankful, but I am much, much more. I am indebted. I am awed. I am overcome. You are our most valuable resource. Shortly after receiving our daughter’s autism diagnosis, without much discussion and no hesitation, you agreed to quit your job. You said, “I want to do whatever is best for Stella.” You never wavered. I’m sure that staying home with her and driving her back and forth to therapies all day, six days per…
Read MoreThanking Those that Brought us Answers
Imagine not being able to express every day needs and wants. Behavioral issues become a concern because the child is feeling frustrated. The parents are equally frustrated and concerned as to why their child is unable to express their wants and needs that are appropriate for their age. This scenario was what my daughter, myself, and my husband experienced. At 18 months old our daughter was referred to Early On Intervention. After being evaluated a speech therapist diagnosed Haley with Expressive and Receptive Language Disorder. As time went on, we…
Read MoreIf I Had It My Way
I’m someone who copes very poorly with the unknown. I like to KNOW what is going on and especially what is going to happen. This is true to a much lesser extent with having MS (whose hallmark, as we know, is unpredictability) but I suspect this is because I’ve been doing so very well for the more than seven years since my diagnosis—it’s something that has faded into the distant background of my life as the more time passes without incident. But ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you that…
Read MoreThere is No Easy Autism
When my daughter was first diagnosed on the autism spectrum last year, I clung to the concept that it was no big deal—that it was “mild,” and she was “high functioning.” She was going to be fine and this was not going to interrupt our lives because she was so smart and how could that happen? But looking back, I now wonder—what does that mean? What is “high functioning autism (HFA)?” Well, it’s not a medical term or recognized diagnosis from the DSM-5 manual, it’s just how some parents prefer…
Read MoreThe Second Guess
Most of autism has been a guessing game. I don’t know why my daughter has autism. I guess if could be: Genetics Environment Early birth Or the crop duster that used to fly over my house I haven’t the faintest idea why some days she is so happy and other days crazy with rage. I guess it could be: Hormones Inflammation Weather changes Who knows why she can sleep for four nights and then is up again for three? I guess it could be: Something she ate Something she dreamt…
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