I had an absolute perfect pregnancy, no morning sickness, no problems during birth. He refused to breastfeed, didn't want to be held, if I rocked him it had to be on my knee, he didn't want my shoulder. He slept 10 hours a night at 6 weeks, and everyone told me how lucky I was to have such a good boy. At 10 months Ayden still wasn't sitting up on his own, I dismissed it as him just being a little behind, he was my first child and I had no-one to compare him to. At 12 months Ayden wasn't standing up, couldn't pull himself up on chairs and wasn't crawling yet. At 18 month's all babbling ceased to exist, I got nothing, and he still wasn't walking. He would spin anything he could, spinning around for hours in a computer chair was his favorite thing to do. He acted like he couldn't hear me when I called out to him, and the doctor was starting to worry.
We got into our car and took the 2.5 hour drive to see a specialist who after 5 minutes looked at us and said very simply "He has autism". I walked out into the hallway, sank down to the floor and cried for 15 minutes. This was the beginning of our journey. From then on it was therepy 5 days a week, 1-2 therapists a day. He didn't speak at all till he was almost 4.5 and the first time he said "mom" I again, sank down to the floor held my son and cried for 15 minutes. He is now 6.5, mainstreamed in our local elementary school and flourishing. He can name all the planets and their moons. He can name every shape imaginable and write like he's been doing it for years. He talks in full sentences, and I still want to cry every time I hear mom, although now I hear it almost every five minutes. He amazes me everyday, and it's been an amazing journey.
mooers, NY
