I remember the day when the doctors told me my son was diagnosed with autism.
Our journey to that point was anything but easy.
By the time we found this neurologist we were desperate for answers and reading anything and everything to try and solve this mystery.
We had our suspicions already but the diagnoses of autism confirmed what we already knew.
We also found out that doctors are real good at giving out diagnoses' but not real good at informing you about what to do next.
So, once again we scanned the internet and the library for any information we could find on autism.
We found that not much was known about it.
We also were told that if we wanted help for our son we should move to another state.
I thought to myself " that's just great!".
Needless to say it was not in the cards for us.
We went to psychologist after psychologist trying to get some kind of help and their answer was try this pill? And if it didn't work then it was " let's add another one!" T.
J.
Was just entering school age and then began the fights with the school district who had the mindset that special needs children should be seen and not heard.
It was the first of many battles with him.
I was struggling to keep my marriage afloat and it was fast becoming a losing battle.
I had a husband who insisted the house be perfectly clean and all the while my son was content with making messes when and wherever he could.
Exhaustion doesn't even begin to cover it.
My son had a hard time sleeping at night and decided night time was play time.
I usually would wake up to everything pulled out of my cupboards in the kitchen and him driving his toy trucks in a pile of pancake mix or a flood in the bathroom.
During the day he we would knock holes in the walls or simply wander off so I could search the neighborhood for him.
The police department knew us on a first name basis, along with the hospital.
I remember one day I was cleaning his bedroom when I heard water running.
I thought to myself, " here we go again!" And the next thing I know in walks t.
J.
My son screaming " hot water! Hot water! And steam was billowing in the hallway.
I ran into the bathroom where the rushing water sound was coming from, to discover he had pulled the hot water pipe to the sink out of the wall and water was spraying everywhere and it could not be shut off from there.
I then had to run downstairs and shut the main water valve off.
I then held my son and we laughed.
When it was time for a school in the mornings it was always a battle to get him dressed cause he hated wearing cloths.
I was lucky to get his hair combed.
I would get him on the bus and then sit down in exhaustion only to hear the phone ring a half hour later.
" Mam this is springdale elementary could you please come get your son? He's being disruptive and we can't handle him.
" I'd hang up the phone and drive 20 minutes to pick up my son yet again.
It had become almost a daily ritual.
No one seemed to care about what I was dealing with or they'd feel sorry for me and do nothing to help.
I was fighting with school districts, arguing with doctors and my husband.
T.
J.
Started to withdrawn more and more into himself and his own world and I was afraid of losing what little progress we had made.
I was exhausted emotionally and physically.
Finally I decided that maybe a group home would be best for him since I was not getting support where I was.
I found one I was really impressed with in boise because they had experience with children who had autism and so when he turned 8 years old he was placed in a group home.
It was one of the hardest days of my life.
I cried for days.
Some of the symptoms he exhibited were: spinning things, echolalia (repeated words or phrases you've said back to you or over and over again), tantrums, self-stimulation( over focusing on an object), lining things up, no sense of time, no sense of the weather or temperature.
For instance if it was snowing outside he'd run out the door with nothing on but his underwear and be perfectly fine.
Autism is a puzzle in the sense that you're always trying to figure out what your child needs because he or she can not tell you in a normal way.
I was lucky in the fact that my son is verbal.
Most children with autism don't have any language skills.
Some are what's called idiot savant autism meaning they're a genius in one area as in the rain man story.
They also don't have a sense of right or wrong.
My son has attention seeking behaviors.
He discovered at a young age that he was a boy with all the equipment.
He was my first child and so me trying to be a good parent taught him the correct words for all his body parts.
Imagine my embarrassment, when to my surprise he stands up in a shopping cart in the middle of Fred Meyers, screaming, "penis penis penis!!!" A the top of his lungs and laughing.
I instantly grabbed him out of the cart and escorted him promptly out of the store with my hand across his mouth.
Some days were like that and you never knew when or where it would happen.
That was one of many behaviors he had.
He is highly intelligent and can tell you what chemicals are in things.
He also knows how to take apart many things and occasionally knows how to put them back together again.
He's really into science fiction and loves harry potter.
I love him to pieces! He truly is a joy to me.