Autism and My Life.

(I initially had 2 blogs.....one for general life and another for issues related to Autism. I have decided that it would be more practical to combine the two since Autism related issues play a central part in my everyday life. The following post was written on another blog.)

Autism. Everyone has heard of it. The number of people affected by it is staggering and ever increasing. My daughter was diagnosed with Autistic Disorder just over a year ago but I knew for quite some time before that. We were wait listed for over a year to see someone and I took that time to learn as much as I could about what exactly autism is, what it looks like, how it presents, therapies, etc. I am definitely not the kind of person who takes a laid back approach when it comes to my children or really anything that needs investigating. A definite type 'A' I like to get involved, research and learn so I can take an active role advocating for my precious little one.

Bumblebee was officially diagnosed when she was four and a half years old. She is highly verbal and precocious, social and sweet. Like all children who find themselves somewhere on the spectrum she has trouble with certain things like communicating (specifically the fluid, two-way, give and take, back and forth chatter) and emotional reactions. It has been shown that in children with Autism their brain centres develop unevenly and the connectivity of those centres is underdeveloped. This is precisely why you often see such uneven skill sets. For example, bumblebee can read at a level way beyond her age. Her fellow classmates could be working on three letter words and she is zimming along through a book created for children several years her senior. Contraversly, her emotional maturity and flexibility resembles that seen in children half her age. Uneven.

This is one of the reasons that we have chosen to homeschool. She has the freedom to work on things that challenge her and also the time to decompress from stress when need be. There will be no bells ringing so loudly that she is frightenened, unless the smoke detector is activated which does happen on occasion. She can read a book recommended for children several years older if she so chooses and we can recognize when she is being overstimulated and give her the opportunity to calm down.

Autism has forever changed me. It has forever changed the way I look at life, love and family. In many ways it has taught me what it means to be humble. You cannot feel that sense of self pride by your 'perfect little well behaved children' when your toddler is having a tantrum right in the middle of a powerful sermon. It takes humility to parent a child with special needs. They are often not predictable. This keeps me on my knees. I have faith that God has blessed my husband and I with this beautiful child so that he may be glorified. I take joy in the sweet moments of connection shared between bumblebee and I. God has taught me to cherish small moments, small steps and most of all to trust him and his sovereignty.