welcome...

I used to be one of those people who didn't really believe in autism.  Sure, I knew there were kids out there with severe autism-you know, the ones who ran around at 15 years old in underwear and bit people- but I honestly didn't believe in all the children who were being diagnosed.  I honestly thought it was all a bunch of hype, the latest and greatest diagnosis for strong willed children and bad parents.

 

Even in nursing school, when we briefly touched on it, I thought to myself, "yeah, yeah, move on.  In 10 years this will have blown over and all these kids will have a new diagnosis because the 'autism-ship' has sailed."

 

Then Whitaker was born.

 

 

 

Whitaker was a sweet baby.  Happy, playful, bright, fun. Yeah, we always joked about how strong willed and particular he was or how sensitive he was-but he loved being with people, loved to play and was developing typically.  It wasn't until he was 16 months old that I started to get worried because he wasn't saying any words.

 

I'll spare you the details of how it all played out-and all of the heartbreak involved (I am sure one day we will get to it)-but after 10 months of trying to figure out what was going on, we found ourselves in the office of a child psychologist.  I can tell you right now, that is a place I never thought I would end up.  Needless to say, I realized that autism is very real.

 

I can remember that day very specifically.  It was a day I hope I never have to repeat and it was the day that changed or lives. 

 

My name is Jen and I have a child with autism spectrum disorder.  This is our story.

 

 

 

My hopes in writing this down is that I can have a place to be real about this whole thing.  A place to be honest, a place to vent and a place to share our accomplishments and progress.  And, you never know, but maybe in my process, I can help someone else!

 

So, come enjoy our roller-coaster with us!