The wait is finally over! Mommy & Aubree took Brycen to school this morning at 8:30. I learned a lesson to not park within sight of the playground...this resulted in a backpack thrown on the ground and Brycen refusing to get up and walk into the school until he was reminded of the fish in the classroom. Not much acknowledgment when we said goodbye to him either...but I honestly didn't expect him to get upset or to even care that I was leaving as they have so many cool toys and a huge fish tank!
After coming home, Aubree just wasn't sure what to do by herself. She sat in her rocker for a few minutes and then slowly started to play with a couple toys, but would frequently come over to me where I was working on the computer to check in with me. I did find out just how productive I can be with work with only one child at home...I accomplished all that I wanted with some time to spare before having to go back to pick up Brycen. Daddy was able to join us to pick him back up at 11:00 since they only had 1/2 day for the first day. Brycen greeted us with a huge smile...he was walking around outside with one of the IA's after the other children had gotten on the bus. He even wanted the teacher to walk with us to the door to leave!
The teachers told us he picked up toys well, fed the fish, and ate breakfast with them with no hesitation. There are only 5 children in the classroom with different special needs so I have no doubt that Brycen will get plenty of 1:1 attention for what he needs, as well as he will learn to socialize in a small group with others.
We are all looking forward to next week when he will have 5 full days!
"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, August 21, 2009
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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.
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.
Yippee! I'm glad everything went so well, besides the playground, that is. :) So how many adults are there with the five kids? That's a great number for a wonderful preschool experience for him. How fabulous.
ReplyDeleteThere is one teacher and two instructional assistants. I believe more children can be added to the class as the year goes on if needed, but I'm not too sure what the other children's needs are in the room. Yes, it is definitely going to be a great way to start his school experience!
ReplyDeleteThis is so exciting. I can't wait to see how far he progresses! It seems like he's really been picking up on everything you've been learning and trying with him. And once he's further diagnosed and you know exactly how to proceed I bet he'll really take off.
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear how well his day went!
ReplyDelete