DS (or Don) is 6 years old and on the Autism Spectrum.
Like may ASD stories, when Don was 18 months old, I noticed he was not talking. This concerned me a great deal and I immediately brought it up with his pediatrician; who told me, this is normal, you are a first time mother... blah blah blah. I didn't take that and instead went on a mad hunt to find out what was going on with my son.
It didn't take me long to find services and since then, it's been a roller coaster ride for the past 4 plus years and still continues to be. Lots of progress but lots of battles and trials and tribulations. Of course, this is my son so I will fight to no end for him, but it shouldn't be this hard. I swear, you would think we've come a long way as a country in terms of special education, but sometimes, I wonder.
Don has made a lot of progress despite several challenges, but he still needs a lot of work. He has about 4 different therapies each week; a couple at school and some private therapies at different locations.
He is very smart, he speaks two languages (English and Danish), he loves to read, loves to play soccer, he is so funny and outgoing, he takes swim class and in the fall he wants to take Violin lesson. This winter, I hope to get him on the slopes for skiing lessons and next summer, surfing lessons in Hawaii.
He is turning into a pretty well rounded little kid :) I can't believe 6 years have already gone by.
