Stories of Hope

A Single Mom's Story.........

I believe babies are born with Autism. Looking back on the day my son was born I truly believe he was born with this and there is nothing I or any doctor could have done to change this. God made us who we are and He knows of us while we are developing in the womb. It's natural for people to look for answers and gain reasoning on why did this happen to my child? What did I do to cause this? What could I have done to prevent this? All of these questions are here to try and find a way to "fix it" when in reality there is no fixing Autism. We cannot force our children to "be like other kids" and do things that they do because children with Autism are different. My son stopped doing things such as waving bye bye and suddenly got extremely picky with foods he used to gobble up now all of a sudden he acted like he was scared of them. He finally began to crawl at 13 months old and walked shortly after at 15 months old. He always had an interest in his hands and inspected everything he touched. He wants to know how things work. I learn so much from my 3 year old son everyday and I have been truly blessed to watch him grow and learn.

Ashley
Lenexa, KS

Better Late Than Never

Well, growing up was lonely and challenging. I never quite fit in with any click at school. I was that weird, quiet, girl. Yes, I had one really good friend in elementary school, Nanette. She didn't seem to mind or notice. My mom did notice and took me to a doctor. I took a lot of tests. He didn't know why didn't I talk or play with other kids. He told her that I was really intelligent. I didn't do normal kid things. I hated playing outside with the feel of the grass and the sun, both of which bothered me immensely. I read encyclopedias and dictionaries. And, I was always imitating people, their accents, mannerisms etc. And, I was obsessed with time, being perfect.

High school was challenging, my literal self couldn't understand a lot of things, lots of misinterpretations. No dates, boys were an uncomfortable mystery. Unlike most teen girls, I hated the mall. It was so noisy and crowded. Well, the literal challenge posed lots of problems on tests. Even though I was smart, I had terrible test anxiety so my grades suffered.

Here, is the happy part, I finished college, got married and had two girls. My second child was diagnosed with Aspergers and as I read the symptoms, I saw myself. As an adult, I was diagnosed as PDD-NOS. So, I made it through decades with no psychological or academic support, ABA etc. It was difficult growing up being me. But, I wouldn't change all of my negative experiences like being teased and bullied. I am a strong, independent, successful teacher. I work with the kids who are different or have trouble learning. I love it! I get them and they get me.

When I was diagnosed, the psychologist talked to me about helping me change and become more normal. I responded, "Why would I want to change? Being autistic is what makes me good at my job, organized, creative, and innovative". So to all of you who want to be normal, don't be. Be yourself because God doesn't make mistakes.

Jael Penn
Friendswood, TX

Our Miracle

Salvador was born at 24 weeks weighing only 1lb 5oz. For three months he was in the hospital. Other than developing Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) he was healthy. After many surgeries to reattach his retinas, ROP had claimed his eyesight leaving him completely blind. His father and I knew we had a long road ahead.

Sal had services for his blindness since he was a baby, but at the age of three he started changing. Sal was talking less, he started rocking, becoming obsessive about items, and flapping his hands. Relatives with an autistic child would always mention he was just like their son when he was that age. This prompted us to take him to the Dr. for an evaluation. Every evaluation was the same. Blind children exhibit many of the same characteristics of autistic children and Dr's would inform us he was fine. We always felt Sal was different. He was not a typical blind child as he had many quirks. Deep down we knew something else was going on. Our persistence paid off and at the age of five we received a diagnosis of Autism. Our suspicion proved correct and some relief fell over us.

Sal's behavior got him kicked out of his kindergarten class for the blind. We were devastated and worried he would fall far behind. Thankfully, he was placed in a school specializing in language disorders and autism. Within three months he knew the Braille alphabet and was playing the opening song, on a grand piano, at the school's annual play. He still attends this school today.

Sal is 10 now and a bright young man. He is a mentor to another blind and autistic student in his class. He remembers EVERYTHING! Nothing gets by his ears! He talks non-stop and is full of questions. He is working on his independence, his obsessions, non-sense talk, rocking, and hand flapping. This seems like so much to some, but to us he is a miracle in more ways than one! His differences are our norm and our family and friends wouldn't have it any other way!

Jamie Leija
Peoria, AZ

In honor of my son

This tattoo is in honor of my son. The M with the star represents the Magic Foundation. This foundation has helped me tremendously with my sons growth disorder (SGA). My son was diagnosed on the autism spectrum (PDD-NOS) at the age of 5.

Anonymous
Aldan, PA

Numbers, but no communication

Eli was born November 26, 2009. He was sweet, affectionate, and adorable! It was around 15 months that I noticed a few things about Eli that were just different. He would look out of the corner of one eye up at any light or ceiling fan and walk in circles examining it. He didn't speak much, but what really concerned me was his lack of understand what we said. We could point to a toy on the floor and ask him to pick it up and he would simply look at us like we were speaking a foreign language. We just didn't know that to him, we were!
A preschool teacher that I trusted agreed to let him come to class on a trial basis at almost 3 to see what her opinion of his speech delay and comprehension was. It only took her a week to call and suggest he start speech therapy at a local school that has a wonderful Special Ed program. I had previous exposure to autism & expressed my concerns. They agreed to watch those red flags and see if he grew out of them. He didn't. June, 2013 we FINALLY got our official diagnosis. Those teachers were/are our greatest blessings.
The only thing he connected with were numbers and shapes. At 2 he could count 1-20 and back to 1. Now at 4 he counts to 121! But he LOVES # 5 and pentagons!
He is high functioning which made a diagnosis hard to get. He has his good days, and his really bad days. Speech therapy got him telling us what he wants. ABA has him actively engaging in 2 way communication as best he can after only 3 months. He tries to play WITH friends! He is our brilliant, happy, counting angel.

Anonymous
Coopersville, MI

Born with a difference

For a friend who's son-Blaise,who has Spastic Quadraplegic Cerabral palsy

I was born with a difference
I couldn't stand tall
Before i could walk
It took me years just to crawl
...
My body didn't form
But my heart was so strong
I was blessed with the best parents
They never saw me as wrong
...
Born with a difference
But the difference is me
I'm a fighter with a passion
My life is a miracle,you'll see
...
Each day we are learning
Improving with Love and care
Taking tiny steps forward
Into a world that's not fair
...
The difference i am making
Showing the world who i am
I have the roar of a tiger
But I'm as soft as a lamb

Mairi Maclean
Brownsplains, Australia

My little man Luke

Luke was born on September 6, 2011 via c-section. He was a normal baby...sat up and walked when he was supposed to. While he didn't do much talking, he would babble on and off. He didn't have much eye contact and seemed to be in his little world. He would occasionally spin in circles and walk on his tip toes but he was my boy and while I felt something was off, I didn't want to admit it. At his 2 year check-up, I brought up my concerns to his doctor and she expressed the possibility of Luke being autistic. My world fell apart. I was afraid that I could never be the strong mommy Luke would need me to be. We were fortunate that we were able to have him diagnosed and have treatment start so early in his life. We are now 3 months into his ABA therapy and Luke's progress has been amazing. He is mastering his programs quickly and his speech is vastly improving. I have come to the realization that my son has unlimited potential. Autism has become his superpower and he has had to overcome more challenges in his 2 years than many people will face in their lifetime. My son is autistic and I am one proud mama!

Erika Harwood
Covina, CA

The Light that Breaks Through the Clouds

"You have such a gentle soul..." Those were the first words ever spoken to baby Riddock James. RJ, was born nearly on his due date at a small 5lbs 7oz. He has ice blue eyes and light blonde hair, unlike any relative. He grew normally and exceeded physical milestones.

At three months, Riddock seemed to observe the world differently than his peers. At eight months old, he began obsessing over cylindrical objects and sorting everything around him. At eighteen months old, he was struck with his first seizure, during which he stopped breathing.

Almost a week in intensive care resulted in nothing but more mystery. Riddock has since received an autism diagnosis, but also developed a unique movement disorder. After countless normal or unexplainable test results, Riddock remains an un-diagnosed for over a year. The gray clouds of disabilities do not bother this little hero, who remains a loving, inspirational, and bright a ray of sunshine.

Despite being non-verbal, at 2&1/2 Riddock can easily identify the numbers 1-10, A-Z, shapes, and spells full words on his Ipad. He speaks fluently using Picture Exchange Communication. He amazes his therapists and myself every day.

Riddock is currently in diagnostic processing for Mitochondrial/Neurological-Metabolic Diseases.

Melissa Branch
Newport, NH

Such A Long Journey In Such A Short Time

This handsome little man is John. He has such an amazing journey so far and he is only 3. Everyone kept telling us that there was something wrong with him pretty much from the start. He was always such a quiet baby. He hardly ever cried but he loved to smile and laugh. He seemed fine to us, he was our perfect little man. When he was about a month old he ended up with a large abscess on the back of his head that seemed to appear overnight. Little did we know that was just the beginning. We also had to fight aspiration, skin problems (that alone was a nightmare in itself), steroids to treat his skin, food allergies, asthma, and a few hospitalizations along the way.

By the time he was 9 months old his doctors became concerned about his development. He was not trying to crawl like other kids his age or talking yet. He didn't start crawling until he was 15 months old and around 16 months when he finally started to walk. Again, he still was not talking. He also preferred to play alone and didn't want to play with toys much. If we tried to show him something he would have a meltdown and couldn't keep focused.

Right before he turned 2 we put him into the Early Intervention program. He received speech, development, and occupational therapy. When he turned 3 he was placed into a Early Childhood preschool program at a local school for kids with special needs after finally being diagnosed with autism. I was so skeptical at first but we are so happy with the progress he has made.

He has gone from being non-verbal and having meltdowns all the time to talking and forming sentences. The first time he formed a sentence I wanted to cry. He now plays with other kids and talks. He is still behind for his age but he has come so far from where he started and we can't wait to see where he goes from here. He has changed our lives for the better.

Jamie Edie
Springfield, IL

We are all the same!

Meet Dryw, he was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome at the age of six at the age of six. Before his diagnosis we were told often by doctors that he was just spoiled. Then it happened. As we were driving down the road he tried to jump in the vehicle because it was time for his favorite television show. We had told the doctor that he would often have fits and almost hang himself in his car seat when we travel different paths to familiar places. Almost jumping out of the car got us the attention we needed from the doctors. This was only one of the battles we had to fight as we ventured to get through the help she needed. He often had to deal with tormenting comments from school bullies. He realized he was different from the other kids. His differences made him who he is an awesome young man. Although Dryw was not valedictorian this year he wrote his own speech for graduation.

He wrote: "Although I am not an athlete like Matthew Crawford, Ben Lentz or Jeff Schlicker or smart like Artie Patel or Chloe King or both like Seth Malcolm, in elementary school we were all of the kids that didn't know our ABC's number 123's. Sure some of us were what you would call smart but we were all the same. Are all the same from start to finish. So going Maybel me as a nobody, loser or an idiot. We made great friends and lost some on the way. That changed us, That made us who we are, we are all the class of 2014. So if you call me those you are calling yourself those names. Because in the end we all the same we are the class of 2014."

Amazingly true!

Patricia Lee
Standish, MI