My son Grey is turning 7. I will not sugarcoat the feelings of helplessness, loss, confusion, and depression I initially felt, I cannot say I don't still have days that try my patience and leave me in tears. But, those days are becoming fewer and fewer. I knew something was different about him from birth, when he was 18 months old or so, we noticed not only he was not talking, but was lining things up, wandering in circles, tantruming constantly, and repetitively squeezing his hands together and biting them. Then it got worse, anytime we took him out in public, he would have a fight or flight reaction. Thankfully, we have a very supportive extended family who could babysit or I don't know how I would have gone grocery shopping or to work. He was diagnosed with moderate to severe autism when he was 3, but had already started OT, ST, and hippotherapy. I had to fight to get appropriate services, even the ped. didn't take my concerns seriously at first and the school system wanted to stick him in a class for mentally retarded children. I took him to a Naturopathic Dr. and started him on supplements. I read books to him everyday. He started having a speech explosion at 3.5 yrs old that started as echolalia and then became templated speech. My advice is to use echolalia as a tool. He attended a special ed preschool for 2 years and started public Kindergarten this year in a high-functioning autism class. He goes to 3 regular classes per day with support. He is reading at a 2nd grade level and his communication is 100% age-appropriate! He loves animals, church, his brother, running, and cuddling! I have learned to accept limitations while guiding him to reach HIS potential.

Jen Wilson, M.S.
Gainesville, GA