Happily, and out of the mist, we go…

Seems like I’ve been trying to write this post in my head for so long, I’ve completely lost track of how to start and where to go. But I’ve been very sporadic in this space for what seems like months now and I think everyone deserves an explanation and anyway, since the direction of this blog might change a bit from now on, it’s only fair I catch you all up.

For those of you who have been sharing this space with me for a while, you’ll remember a while back, I shared about my son failing his first hearing test. The support and encouragement I received from all of you was beyond anything anyone could imagine and once again, I want to thank you all for it. Back in February, it had been established that since he was so young and some tests hadn’t been performed successfully, he would need to come back in 6 months to confirm the results.

As we were waiting for that time, it was suggested that we start working with a speech therapist to start stimulating his language acquisition (my son does not speak yet for those who did not know) and through her evaluation, she was able to detect red flags that she suggested we consult a pediatrician for.

Well, I’ll spare you the whole chain of events but it basically went like this : in-home speech therapist evaluation, pediatrician, allergy testing (negative for all food groups, though we are still under investigation for food sensitivities. So far we have eliminated dairy and gluten), specialized educator assessment, in-home observation sessions, pediatric psych evaluation, occupational therapy assessment, follow-up hearing test (which he passed with flying colors – NO DEAFNESS – YAY!), multidisciplinary discussion table and diagnosis : Sensory Processing Disorder with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Now, I can feel hearts breaking already and I want to say PLEASE! Don’t feel sad for us, we are really okay. Feels good to have answers and to move forward finally. They had to put the autism label on because too many red flags were popping up. But they are pushing the therapy for the SPD a lot more. He is still so young, they can’t say yet if the red flags are caused by the SPD or independent of it. We have started occupational therapy and have seen SUCH a huge difference in just a few weeks. Making simple little adjustments to meet his sensory needs has had a major impact. In just a few weeks, our Little Man has started eating with utensils, following simple commands, making a few sign language words with his hands, pointing at stuff he wants…. He can sit with us and draw for a few minutes now, he has cut in about half his need for chewing everything. Just last night, he sat through an entire book (a big book) with his dad and sister without even trying to wiggle out of the seat once and even pointing at a few images when prompted. They are so confidant that we will be able to amazing things with him since they’ve caught it so early.

In the end though, autism and sensory processing disorder are not diseases. He is a perfectly happy and healthy boy. We just have to learn to work with his brain and the special connections it makes. Most of the red flags were cognitive and communication. I don’t want you to worry about him being violent, self-mutilating, aggressive, fitful… he is super sociable, loves people, loves to run around a play, smiles all the time. He is not afraid of strangers (he’s just not a hugger, but many 2 year olds are not huggers, we don’t think that is autism. LOL!) He does have a few repetitive behaviors, but they are funny quirky ones like pulling on strings and standing on his head. 🙂 No head banging or anything like that. He’s also very adaptable : He’ll eat anything, sleep anywhere. He’s not a slave to a routine. He’s also wicked smart : A few months ago, he pulled apart my dad’s flashlight and was able to put it back together without anyone’s help. I’ve had people look at me and say “he doesn’t look like he has autism” and that always makes me laugh.

So there you go. Life just got REALLY interesting. We have been busy planning the set up of a new sensory gym for him (and all of us really) in our living room. My husband will be building him a scooter board and a platform swing (for which he will share his plans here soon). And for me, well now that you all know, I’ll feel freer to share our daily rhythms as they unfold. Please ask questions if you have them! If there is one thing we’ve realized during these last few months, it’s that people have a very skewed idea of autism and most people don’t even know about sensory processing, let alone sensory processing disorder. There are no silly questions, so fire away!

Wishing you all  a wonderful week. Be grateful for health and happiness, they are truly a blessing. Everything else is a path designed for you to walk on and learn from. All life is beautiful if you just let it be so.