Hagen seemed to be a perfectly normal, happy baby. When he was 18 months old, I became concerned that he didn't say common words such as "mama, dada, or cup", but he could identify all the letters of the alphabet, numbers, colors, and shapes. Hagen was not interested in other children. He was often obsessive about certain things. I couldn't keep him away from the tv and iPad. He was constantly throwing things, especially wood chips and sand on the playground. I knew in my heart something wasn't quite right. Because Hagen "looked" normal, it was hard to convince friends and family to take my concerns seriously. Hagen was finally diagnosed with high functioning ASD when he was 3 and a half years old. Since then we've put lots of interventions in place. He receives speech therapy, occupational therapy, and ABA therapy. Hagen will be 5 in September. He is in a regular preschool classroom with a great support system. Thanks to an awesome team of people, Hagen has made tremendous progress. Although he sometimes struggles with social situations he has made friends and become quite the little social butterfly. We love Hagen unconditionally and he has been such a blessing to our family. He has taught us that it's ok to be different.

Amanda Frick
Gaston, SC