As you may have noticed, I have been a bit absent lately. There are many reasons why this happened, from a brief-yet-efficient obsession with Christmas gift shopping to Mollie getting up way too early every morning to getting behind on photo touch ups and organization and letting that overwhelm me. But another reason is that there is something I have wanted, and needed, to write about but haven't really known how to. Or even whether I should. Having thought about it for a couple weeks now, though, I think that talking about it is better in the long run because it will increase awareness and understanding.
What I am putting off saying is that Baylor was recently diagnosed with an early childhood developmental delay; more specifically, were he having difficulty in a school setting, he would have been diagnosed with either Asperger's Syndrome or Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDDNOS). I'm doing all I can, with the time and attention I have, to learn about each of these issues, both a part of the Autism Spectrum, and to figure out what I can do to help him. Since he was diagnosed by people in our school system, they are providing us with assistance according to Baylor's individualized education program (IEP). Still, though, I feel like I need to learn more, do more to help him out. I have had a suspicion that there were issues here for a while, and now that I have an idea of what they might be I both notice them more and feel a sense of urgency in working to help my little man adapt to his surroundings a little better.
Does this diagnosis change how I feel about my son? Hell no! Absolutely not. Is this the end of the world? Not in the least. There are so many people who have much bigger problems than this. But it does give me an awareness of how everyone else might see my son and how his future social interactions may play out. And because of that I feel moved to action.
I hope to write more on this later as I learn about these syndromes/disorders, but I just wanted to share this with you now. You who read this blog, how ever many people that may be, are a part of my life and, as such, I wanted to clue you in on what is going on in my life right now. And to those of you who know and love Baylor, I hope that this provides you with at least a little insight as to his ... quirks, for lack of a better word. Have patience with him, and hopefully after more research I'll be able to share with you how to better interact with the little man.
I hope all is well with you. Happy holidays!
4 comments:
I know I am not exactly a party of your life, but I just wanted to tell you that I think You are an awesome mom Nicole. I'm sure that getting a diagnosis isn't easy, but the way you sound means great things for him. Early diagnosis is always key and parents willing to do anything to help their child means a shining future!
-Megan Dineff-
My nephew has Asbergers and several cousins of mine are Autistic. I am no expert, but I do know my nephew is one of the most loving, caring, intelligent 12 year olds I know. He loves horseback riding, cars, and do-it-yourself projects and he is really fun to talk with (often teaches me something I didn’t know about whatever subject we are talking about). His major ‘symptom’ is becoming obsessed and fixated on something and when he was younger he would rather interact with adults than other children. Any diagnosis might feel like a challenge, but with you and Bryson as caring parents I have no doubt you will make this challenge into an opportunity! Baylor is one smart and terribly handsome little boy.
Nicole, a few years ago I watched a program that linked milk and milk products to Autism. It was very interesting. One woman took her child off milk and had amazing changes in her child. I don't know if this had been linked to Aspergers (which I probably spelled wrong). But I thought it might help when your researching. Good luck and I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.
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