Brycen is AMAZING! One year ago was a crazy time for our family...scared and not sure what was going on and wondering how it is possible for a child to "lose" words for what seemed to be no reason at all. Now, we are experiencing so much progress with him that it is almost a different kind of scary! What if we push him too hard...will he stop and shut down? What if we don't push him hard enough...will we miss an opportunity that may never come again? So many questions again, but it's all so different now.
His teachers, his speech therapists, EVERYBODY is in complete awe of how far he has come over the last several months. We went from him screaming when a new person came close to him or walked in the door...to him being very accepting of most people and actually smiling and recognizing the regulars. He used to be oblivious to Aubree...now he is actually initiating "play" with Aubree and sharing his toys more, and not just "looking through" her or constantly pushing her away. Last spring when we initiated communication cards, he would throw them down and yell...now he knows what they mean, uses them to make choices and actually seems to enjoy them! And his LANGUAGE...oh, wow...he has progressed so much in this area and far beyond what we could have dreamed! He's imitating, using more spontaneous signs, and just attempting different sounds!
His speech therapist said he had an awesome session on Wed with them and she wishes she would have videotaped it because he was constantly imitating all the words they were saying. We visited during a session on Thurs with them for the first time and was able to witness the use of communication cards, following directions, and the attempt at language. At first we were concerned he would not be the same for them if we were in the room, but we had to at least try...and boy, were we wrong. He was showing off for everybody! And he is soooo proud of himself and yells "yay" after every little step he takes. His enthusiasm is contagious!
Most children experience a language explosion between 18 months and 2 years, and ironically, Aubree is in this stage right now just at the same time that Brycen is exploding with his own language. Could it be that she is bringing it out of him??
Please continue to keep Brycen in your thoughts and prayers because obviously all of the support and prayers are WORKING! There are many times over the last year or so that I have questioned God and what his "plan" is for us and "why." Now I am finally allowing myself to see that this is it...you can never experience the good and best things in the world, without running through the not-so-good somewhere along the way!
"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, March 5, 2010
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment