M is for Music

In the presence of music, A2 is the conduit that paints the musical mural that you cannot see just by listening. It is a source of joy, excitement, passion and communication for him. Though A2 has a high desire to communicate his speech/language disorder makes it very difficult if not impossible sometimes to do so. A symptom of his Autism is Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Communication disorders that involve speech directly are a common issue for many children on the spectrum. A2 often knows what he wants to say, but cannot make his mouth follow the step by step instructions his brain wants him to in order to form sounds, sentences or ideas. This is a motor planning difficulty. There are phonological errors, jargoning and word finding problems and oral-motor weakness in addition that prohibit him from effectively communicating verbally. In addition to the 6 hours…

L is for Love

Because L is ALWAYS for love when it’s about your child. As a parent, as do many special needs parents…I find it confusing and sometimes a little unsettling when people say to me “I don’t know how you do it” or “I don’t think I could do what you do” or elevate my parent-ness to the likes of a saint. People are well meaning-I know the awkward sentiment is often a compliment of sorts, but it’s hard to respond. What is the most difficult thing you would do for your own child? Push him out of the way of a bullet and take it yourself? That would be mine because caring for my child and meeting his needs is not even a close comparison to taking a bullet. We love our children with parts of our souls that we did not know existed before they were…

An Occupational Therapist once corrected me in a meeting when I mentioned that A2 ‘s progress is like being in a race. She said “no, it’s like being in a marathon, you have to pace yourself”….but not having a child with a disability herself what she didn’t understand is that he needs to be front runner in that marathon if he has any hope of functional independence as an adult. As any kid ages, it gets harder to learn new things easily–neural pathways are set, myelination slows down…so early on every moment needs to become practice or a learning opportunity. We celebrate small steps toward independence with hope. After 2 years of task analysis, A2 can almost navigate a bathroom (with the exception of going) with minimal assistance. Yesterday, he independently ordered fries. But he cannot be alone or play outside without supervision, he cannot make his needs known clearly…

H is for Haircuts

Lots of autism moms become expert level beauticians early on. I can scissor cut the hair of a moving target in 10 minutes or less without making my subject look like Moe from the 3 Stooges. But it’s been a long time coming…A2’s flip switched at about 24 months and haircuts became Wrestlemania meets the Exorcist with half-nelsons, projectile vomiting, sweating, injuries and lots of public interest. Many children with Autism fear hair cutting time as it becomes sensory overload for them. In addition to having to sit still for extended periods of time, the smells of unfamiliar products, the feel of a wet head the sounds of clippers buzzing becomes a sensory nightmare. Haircuts are pleasant experiences now in the comfort of our own bathroom and paired with Monsters Inc on the iPad and the promise of getting to use the vacuum for clean up.

E is for Elopement

“Check water first”. The most terrifying emergency directive a parent can hear….and this is the protocol for children with Autism who go missing. Elopement, wandering, bolting, fleeing. 48% of children with autism elope. Drowning is the leading cause of death in kids under 14 with Autism. We are lucky-A2 only gets distracted and wanders to find things that are interesting without regard to safety or whether a familiar adult is nearby–but he does not run from us–which prevents so many families from being able to go in public safely with their child. One of the things that makes A2’s non-elopement complicated as that he is not a risk…. until he is.  He can go a full year with staying in eye shot and then one day out of no where he will simply leave the house.  With no warning. He also cannot tell anyone his first…

In the most typical of situations sibling issues exist. For sibs of those with significant impairment, these kids are often the invisible bystanders. Their issues and needs sometimes take backseat to the immediacy and reality of their sibling with Autism needs. We ask them to deal with leaving fun events earlier than they would like, let embarrassing situations roll off their backs and stifle disappointment. The rate of having more than one child with neuro diversity is high. Sometimes, the less impaired child is asked to cope and step up in ways that would challenge even the most typical and mature of children.