"When one door of happiness closes, another opens;
but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us."
Helen Keller

Friday, June 1, 2012

Autism is a Mystery ~ Supportive Family & Friends are not!

Have you ever spent a couple hours surrounded by complete strangers that feel like family?  If so, then you know why I look forward to the Autism walk each year.  I don't have to know each of the hundreds of people's names to know that these are the people in my world that "get it."  Though we are gathering to fight one of the biggest mysteries in the world and obviously it's not a celebration of Autism, we still get excited to be surrounded by faith, hope, and A LOT of love for our children who have daily obstacles that many of us just take for granted. 

Did your kids answer the phone this morning with "hello"?  My son isn't able to do that...he is nonverbal.

Did your kids go outside to play in the yard without supervison?  My son isn't able to do that...he doesn't understand to stay in the yard and lacks safety awareness.

Did your kids buckle their own seatbelt the last time you were in the car?  My son isn't able to do that...his fine motor skills make that hard for him.

Did your kids sleep through the night?  My son isn't able to do that...something in his brain causes him to wake almost every night and he requires a medication to even help him fall asleep.

I could list a ton of examples of what most parents take for granted in their children!  But instead of listing more of those, I'd rather have you remember what my son CAN DO!

Did your kids ride their bike this week?  My son did too!

Did your kids give you a hug and kiss?  My son did too!

Did your kids play games on the computer?  My son did too!

Did your kids play with a sibling or friend this week?  My son did too!

Did your kids laugh and smile today?  My son did too!

Did your kids do a chore around the house?  My son did too!

In 8 days, we will be surrounded by families and friends that are taking time out of their busy schedule to spend a Saturday morning fighting against Autism!  Most of the people on Team Brycen will also have traveled from out of town to do so as well.  How amazing to have about 40 family and friends come together to show support for a disorder that is one of the biggest mysteries in the world and is becoming an epidemic as the diagnosis rates continue to rise year after year. 


Not only do we have some amazing 40 people surrounding Brycen that day...but we also have an outstanding number of people that have donated to this cause with their hard-earned money!  Classmates from when Mike & I were in school...to teachers & therapists that have worked with Brycen...extended family that may have never met Brycen...old & new friends...friends of friends that just want to support a good cause...past & present co-workers...to strangers that put money into the fundraising jars at the store.  Together these people donated to Team Brycen 2012 to raise an amazing $6333  as of this morning!!!  The generosity of those supporting us is beyond any expectation we had going into this just 3 years ago! 

Thank you to all of those people who found it in their hearts (and wallets) to donate to a cause that we will forever be linked to!  While Autism may still be a mystery in our lives...the friends and family that support us is most definitely not a mystery! 

There is still time to donate if you haven't already.  Below is a link that will take you directly to our team fundraising page where you can click on the names of any of the walkers or "general team" to make a donation.  If you prefer, you can also give me a check or cash and I will get it to the right people! 
http://www.walknowforautismspeaks.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=998348&lis=1&kntae998348=E2B0C08AF8B244E5BCCC0D842D0F7F12&team=4940637
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Autism and Our Family

"Autism"----It's one word that can change the life of a child and family in so many ways. Autism Spectrum Disorders are being diagnosed at a rate of 1 in 68 children currently. If you do not already know someone that has been diagnosed, the statistics say it won't be long before you do.

Our son developed typically until around the time he turned 2 years old. We heard words...we saw him play with other kids...we watched as he played with his toys appropriately...we made eye contact with him...overall we understood his wants and needs. In a matter of a few months, that was all taken away from him. He began lining up toys, lost all of his words and signs except for one word "ball", ignored other kids, could not sleep through the night, lost eye contact and the ability to follow directions, and he had no way of letting us know what he wanted or how he felt. It was heartbreaking to see something happening to our child that we couldn't stop!

Brycen began receiving home therapy 1-2 times per month for about 6 months before we realized it wasn't just developmental delays. We knew it was Autism...we just didn't want to say it outloud to anyone. He was officially diagnosed with Autism (classic form and regressive), as well as Mental Retardation in August 2009 by the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

We continue to learn as we make our way through this journey with Brycen and we will continue to share this journey with you on this blog! The blog has been a great therapy for us to be able to vent our frustrations and struggles with accepting that we have a child with special needs, while sharing how blessed we are to have a child teach us what life truly means. It has also been a great way to inform others of his progress and changes over the last couple of years.

Thank you for your support of Brycen and our family! We hope you are able to learn something through this blog no matter if you are a parent of a child with special needs or a neurotypical child, a teacher or therapist, a family member, or just someone that is interested in the journey that a family goes on as they learn their child is battling a life-long disorder.