As you know I have recently started studying Education Support. I have completed 3 of 15 subjects so far, one of which was Provide Support to Students with ASD. While I was studying it, I felt uncomfortable. I was upset and I cried. There's a difference between intellectually knowing the stuff and getting it drummed into you the deficits that go with an ASD diagnosis.
It's been 7 years and 8 months since Boy Childs diagnosis. The weird thing is that I remember the exact date we got the report. Maybe that's because I have had to look at the report ocassionally for various reasons. It seems that date is burned into my brain.
Last night I watched the Four Corners episode The Autism Enigma. I found the episode interesting but it really didn't depict how ASD has affected Boy Child so I felt a bit removed from it.
Today I attended a workshop which we were advised to attend, as it would help us in our studies and work in Education Support. It was about making education successful for students with ASD. If last night I felt removed, then today was (as my classes had been) a wake up call. Once again, I'm second guessing the choices we made so long ago, being frustrated by the lack of support we had and hoping that those choices haven't screwed Boy Child up, at least not too much.
The thing is he is happy with who he is. He doesn't think that any additional help would have made much (if any) difference to him. I hope that he is right. But for now, I really would like to just bury my head in the sand. Maybe next week I can go back to thinking of Boy just as Boy without worrying about his ASD because it is a part of who he is. His ASD doesn't define him.
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4 comments:
The bit that sticks out in this post is:
"The thing is he is happy with who he is."
YOU are responsible for that.
And that is exactly what is important.
xx
That has to be so hard. My brother was diagnosed with ASD at the ripe old age of 17, after years and years and years of my Mum fighting to have him assessed and being told that he just had issues and a bad temper. 3 years later he is doing as well as can be expected but I know Mum wonders if things would be different if she had been listened to all those year ago and he had gotten the support that he so desperately needed. I know she worries about him constantly and what his life is going to be like and I just try to remind her that she has done the best that she can and the most important thing is that he is happy. He accepts what is and doesn't dwell on the bad things. And as Madmother said, that he is happy is what is important.
P.S I have an award for you on my blog...http://www.kyliepurtell.com/2012/08/she-loves-me-yeah-yeah-yeah.html
We do the best we can at the time, and that is all we can ever do. Boy child is lucky to have a wonderful mother who cares so much and tries so hard to make him the best he can be, he's a great kid and is perfect just the way he is, you can be very proud of both of you!
Happiness is my key measuring stick. If my girls are happy I know the choices we are making are okay.
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