Why It Wasn't Autism

This is my debut post for my new blog dedicated to our autism journey. I have included the posts that I had written for my other blog as well, just so everything would run a little smoother.

I had mentioned in the last post that I didn't really think Matthew had autism. I hope to explain why here. First of all, I have a nephew who had been diagnosed with autism, and quite frankly, Matthew was nothing like him. They couldn't have been more opposite and I just couldn't see the relevance. It was actually an innocent fault of my called "ignorance". Truthfully, I was ignorant in the subject of autism and did not understand that it was a spectrum that children could fall all along the realm of. Simply stated, children CAN be total opposites and still both be diagnosed with autism. Some of you may be interested in what differences the boys have, so I'll give you some ideas. Some of these things were noticed when they were much smaller and others now, but I think it will give you an idea as to how they fall along the spectrum. Matthew does not mind at all to be MESSY; my nephew, um, not gonna happen. Matthew is a cuddler and love bug; my nephew, not so much. Matthew struggles severely with communication and verbalizations; my nephew can talk your leg off if he chooses and is completely hilarious! Matthew lacked a lot of gross motor skills and my nephew did not have those problems. Matthew was severely lacking in cognitive skills and my nephew has done quite well in several subjects in school. These are just a few of the things that I noticed about the boys that made me think what one of them was diagnosed with, could not possibly hold true for the other. Upon reading and researching, I found out that it is quite possible for this to be true. My nephew is on the high functioning end of the spectrum which means that he in much more capable of functioning in society as we know it. He still has areas that he has difficulty with, but I am amazed at his abilities! If you can't tell, I LOVE my nephew SO much!! He is such a source of joy and fun!! Matthew falls on the low functioning end of the spectrum and faces many more difficulties. SO...I knew there was something wrong with Matthew for him to not be hitting his milestones...I wasn't a complete moron! But, I just hadn't even given the thought to autism at that time because I simply didn't know the facts. Since that time, autism has been brought to the forefront as a widespread disorder and has received much more media coverage. Since learning more about autism and being around more children on the spectrum, I find myself privately wondering if different children I encounter in public fall along the spectrum. There are some that seem so apparent to me, but their parents seem oblivious to their characteristic behaviors. Who knows for sure though; maybe they are simply in denial or are battling the thoughts privately as well. It's definitely not for me to say.

I am really excited about this new blog. I hope to use it as an outlet for myself, but I hope that it helps anyone reading it to understand a little more in depth the impact that autism has on a family. There are lots of topics surrounding autism that I hope to touch upon, but I would LOVE feedback from any of you!! If there is something that you would like to know more about, feel free to ask!! If it's something about my family, I will answer as honestly as I can. If it is more of a factual question about autism in general, I will try to research and find the answer if it is something that I don't know. I have also decided to include an e-mail address so that if any of you have questions that you would like to ask, but don't feel comfortable leaving it in my comment section, you may e-mail me privately. I would love to know who's reading along, and if you are finding this blog to be beneficial! Thanks for stopping by!!