Zachary or Z was diagnosed with Autism about 5 years ago. At the time, he was 10 years old and I was concerned that he could not be diagnosed anymore. When he was a baby he was going through all the developmental steps as he should and when he started to talk, it stopped. Zachary was about 1. He regressed in his development. Luckily, his middle brother has special needs (VCFS) that affected his speech, so we knew to call the program that he was in for therapy to get Zachary help.
The therapists never brought up Autism. The first anyone uttered that word was at our church VBS and Zachary was 3. The next I would hear about it was when Zachary was in kindergarten. The school was able to continue with getting the aide needed to keep him within the special ed department, so we didn't pursue it. It wasn't until the magnitude of his melt-downs changed, the realization of the cognitive disability and worrying about his future (as we had to start thinking about his brother's future) that the need for a diagnosis was needed to be able to open doors easier, if he needed them to be.
Although I already knew, I cried when I read the diagnosis because it became real. Z (he can't stand the sound of his name) is graduating 8th grade and is being confirmed. His melt-downs are still hard to deal with but are not a frequent as they used to be. People ask what he is like when he melts down and I tell them that Z gets as big as a bear. But that big bear turns into the sweetest little bear when he is calm and has always been my little bear.
Sheboygan Falls, WI