Team Brycen: Why I Walk

There are so many reasons why Mike and I choose to participate in the Iowa Walk Now for Autism Speaks!  Obviously, the main reason is because Autism affects our family in so many ways.  Of course we want to raise awareness about Autism and the battles that Brycen and we fight every day.

Two years ago this month, June 2009, was when we received Brycen's initial diagnosis.  We felt so alone...unsure who we could trust to tell with this very important part of our life...unsure if we were strong enough to handle this for the rest of our lives.  It was hard enough using the word "Autism" to each other, so imagine how hard it was for us to actually call our family and friends and tell them about this.  While Brycen's diagnosis has brought us closer to many people, it also has pushed us further away from others for various reasons.  Through all of this, we continue to form relationships with others who truly do understand what we are going through...because those parents are fighting the same fight with their own kids.  It's amazing the bond you can feel with someone that you have never met because both of our children have the diagnosis of "Autism."  It's an instant connection...not a relationship that needs work...instant understanding of what life is like day after day, month after month, year after year.  These parents know what it's like to accept that our summers probably won't be spent at sporting events, city pools, neighborhood picnics...but will be spent scheduling our multiple therapy appts each week, reading new studies, trying new medicines or adding onto our children's sensory diets, keeping a consistent schedule to prevent meltdowns, trying to be one step ahead of anything that can set off our child that makes the rest of the day go down the drain, going to bed each night praying our child will be able to sleep because we are absolutely exhausted, ignoring the stares of other people when our child is flapping and screaming, etc.

I walk in support of all of these parents!  I will go to this walk, knowing if Brycen becomes upset over the crowd, someone touching him, or the noise...I can look into the crowd and see another parent dealing with the same exact thing.  Or I can look into the crowd and see another mom smiling at me, knowing she is not judging me or my child, but making that connection so I know I am not alone.  Despite feeling lonely most days, behind closed doors while my child can't handle the day-to-day events of life, I remember this one day each year that I and my child will feel so supported and loved by so many people we don't even know.  I walk knowing that one smile from me to a mom of a child newly diagnosed, could mean that mom can make it through one more day of this battle.

If you are joining me in the walk this year, please remember to be kind that day.  Please remember not to judge.  Please remember that these families are battling something that is still so unknown to doctors and the world.  Please just smile and show support for those families and individuals that may have a rough time.  It's a day to honor those in Iowa who fight this all day long, all year long...and this is a day that so many of us look forward to away from the reality that are lives are a little different from yours.  It's one day a year where we continue to develop those life-long connections with those people who truly understand.