What is an Autism Diagnosis?
According to WebMD, medically speaking it’s... “observing the behaviors of very young children and listening to the concerns of their parents.” It’s documentation by doctors stating that the child is “on the autism spectrum”, opening doors for care and support they wouldn’t get otherwise.
For us, the autism diagnosis has been a gift.
It’s been a lens with which to see our children with extra amounts of patience, kindness, acceptance and understanding.
It’s been a gift to not judge our own parenting or let the judgment of others dictate how we parent our children.
It’s been a reason to relate to strangers outside our inner circle of friends, who are experiencing the same thing, or have in the past, looking to them for guidance and comfort, and providing the same in return.
It’s been an introduction to some of the most incredible educators/administrators/staff for whom we have the sincerest respect and gratitude.
It’s been an opportunity for us to ask more of those that matter to us, giving them the opportunity to show up in ways even they did not know where possible.
It’s been a chance to forgive our guilt. For the first two years of their lives we felt like we did everything wrong, particularly around not seeing the signs of diagnosis, chalking up the lack of language to be a “twin thing” or typical of the male gender’s learning delays.
It’s been a lesson in communication, teaching us every day that as humans we communicate on so many levels other than through speech, showing us connection at the most cherished level with our children.
It’s been a journey to understand that we don’t know what we don’t know. We have no idea on how to parent autism, but their diagnosis has given us permission to tailor our parenting to exactly what they need, each child uniquely different.
It’s been a reminder that life is not what we expect it to, but that we can in fact handle more than what we thought because of the village that is behind us.
An autism diagnosis for your child can be anything and everything you need it to be. If you’re questioning, fighting, curious about getting your child tested, the key is to do so early on. A diagnosis only stays for three years, and if your child is diagnosed before three years old, the opportunities for complimentary support are endless. If your child reaches age three, it’s so much harder to get the early intervention help that could provide your child the tools and resources they need to strive in the classroom/society, but more importantly, the tools and resources you could use as a parent to be there for your child the way they need you to.