Posts Tagged ‘autism’
We were Oblivious to the Obvious
I don’t really remember how old Holly was when we realised she was “different” and by different I mean not the same as my best friends son. We didn’t really have any other children around us of the same age and no other comparisons. Comparisons of children will always be made whether warranted or not, welcome or not! Our children were born 3 weeks apart and our friendship blossomed as we shared our firsts together. Our first child, our first close friends to experience children together. Our children’s first tooth,…
Read MoreOur Hopes and Goals for 2019
I can’t believe how fast 2018 flew by. It was a rough journey for our family. We faced many challenges. New diagnosis’s. New problem behaviors. Anxiety issues. The list goes on… I am going to stay hopeful for 2019. We are going to work even harder. I am going to continue to stay hopeful Kash will talk. I will continue working hard with him. We will continue working on his problem behaviors. We will continue working on ways to help his anxiety. My son Kash is a sweet, caring, funny…
Read MoreI Feel Helpless at Times
I feel so helpless at times. I wasn’t prepared for that I guess. I am a strong mom. I know that for sure. I am a firm believer that all things can be fixed. If we just work hard enough. Never give up. No situation is helpless. That is what I preach. My son has autism. Or he is autistic. Whichever one you want me to say. I am also supposed to say it makes up who he is. He wouldn’t be him without autism. I think I am supposed…
Read MoreHow Therapy Allowed me to Breathe Again
To our amazing ABA team, I wanted to take this time to explain our level of appreciation for you. I have spent the last year of my life feeling like I could not exhale. Since Dominic was about 20 months old and I suspected he was on the spectrum, I had obsessively immersed myself in researching ways to help build language, both expressive and receptive. I read about 20 books and shed many so tears worrying about my son’s future. He had no words. He was getting angry and frustrated,…
Read MoreSeeing their Future
These two. Brothers. Cooper was barely two when Sawyer was born. I had so many ideas of what their relationship would be like. So close in age. I thought they’d be best friends. I thought they’d play nonstop. Like so many parts of life…what I imagined didn’t happen. Their relationship has always been unique. Lots of ups and downs. Lots of confusion for Sawyer. Cooper is mostly oblivious to him. They rarely interact. They seem to lead separate lives but do acknowledge that the other one seems to live here…
Read MoreDancing in the Moonlight
A little girl maybe 4 walked up to me at the park today and asked me to push her on the swings. I said to ask her Mommy if that was ok first and she turned to me and said…you know when you fall down you just have to try a new way. She walked off but I doubt she saw me sitting on the swing with tears rolling down my cheeks. This was the most profound thing that has ever happened to me in all my 33 years. How…
Read MoreReality Bites
I have 3 beautiful children. Ethan 13 and Gavin 9, have been diagnosed with Level III Autism, without intellectual impairment. My youngest Moira, 3, is just lacking that official stamp. Gavin showed textbook signs, lining up cars in perfect rows, total organization, sensory overload, late speech, I think I was ready for him, but I never quite put the pieces together with Ethan. Looking back I should have seen something. All the signs were there, but as a first time Mom you think, you’re overreacting. He NEVER wanted to be…
Read MoreI’ve Never Heard I Love You
My son is eight. And he’s never once said I love you. He can’t. And maybe he won’t. He doesn’t know how. And maybe he doesn’t want too. There are so many reasons why or why not. I don’t know the exact one. I just know that I would give anything to hear it. He has autism. And he’s nonverbal. He also has Apraxia. Add all three of those reasons together and hearing the three words, I love you, can feel impossible. I actively waited for a long time. I…
Read MoreUnderstanding Self Injurious Behavior
To the autism families that are just learning about Self Injurious Behavior (SIB): I know you’re scared. I know you’re sad. I know you’re mad. I know you’re confused, so confused. Guess what, that’s ok and you’re not alone. We began our journey of SIB on August 14, 2016 my son was 4 years old. My son Deegan was diagnosed with Autism clinically (ADOS) at 22 months old, on September 18, 2013. We began to see “signs” when he was just 13 months old and he began early intervention, speech,…
Read MoreThe Woman who Understands my Son
I am so BEYOND thankful for SO many teachers and therapists for my 7 year old son Mason. It’s hard to choose just one to honor. My husband, Zach and I, have 2 sons with special needs. We love to swim, visit parks, and watch Mickey/PJ Masks. Mason is 7 with moderate autism and has low verbal abilities. Jonas is 3 1/2 with pervasive developmental delays and will be assessed for autism soon. While I think our boys are the sweetest, funniest boys ever, they have a lot of challenges…
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