The Diagnosis

So as a lot of you may know, we have been going through the procedure to find out if Spencer has Autism. Well after jumping through the hoops, over the obstacles, and going around the curves, we have an official diagnosis: Autism Spectrum Disorder. In this post, I am talking about what we have learned. I am by no means an expert on autism, this is just what I understood from the meeting that we had with the specialists.

Autism - WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!?!
Well, it means that his brain works a little different than the average person. He does very well with predictability, rote memorization, and routine. We knew that something was different because he isn't talking but can say and recognize almost all of his ABC's. His brain does much better with learning things visually. When he sees something, he can recognize it. He can point and say his letters, and also point to numbers, colors, and objects when asked (Like "Where's the blue ring?" or "Where's the number 2?" or "Where's the dog?") He knows that you are asking him something, and may even know the answer. He can't always verbally answer the question. 

Right now he is already receiving speech therapy and play therapy. They work with him on starting and finishing tasks, fine motor skills, and obviously - speech! They gave us tips to help with the following

Transitions
We are now going to work with him on transitions from one task to another. They gave us tips on how to help with that. He always throws a tantrum when we come in from playing outside because he doesn't understand why he has to come in. So they told us to use an object to help with transitions. Bring a cup outside so that he knows to come inside to get some water. This helps him to visually see that water is next on our "agenda" so to speak. They also said to use short words or phrases when speaking. Instead of saying "would you like to come inside for some water?" we should try to say "cup." so that he knows that he is coming inside to get a drink. He just can't sort through all the other words to make sense of what we are trying to say. He can't grasp the concept, so we are going to try and shorten our talking to ease that frustration. Once he gets that he can verbally say cup and get something to drink, then we can add more words, like "juice cup" or "water cup" to help him broaden vocabulary and understanding. 

Wants and Needs
When Spencer wants something, we have to play the guessing game to figure out what he wants. He knows some sign language, but it doesn't really help because he won't initiate the communication. He whines until I ask "would you like more?" Which then he may sign more, or he may not. But then the problem is... More what?! So they told us to try and use cards. I have tried to use them before, but I think that I tried to use too many at one time. They said to start out with simple things that he can identify, and maybe only using 2 or 3 cards. So we are going to try and use a picture of a cup, ball, and grapes (one of his favorite snacks). This will allow him to understand that he has to DO something to communicate his wants and needs. When he's hungry, he can hand me the card with the grapes on it.  

Travel
Travel is just a pain in the butt. Basically they said that he may be waking up in the middle of the night, realizing that he isn't in his crib and he's not in his room. We've all done it, woken up in the middle of the night and for a brief second thought, "Where am I?" It's a little different for him because it probably makes him feel worried and starts to panic. So we pretty much have to deal with it until he gets a little older and can realize that he is not home and won't be home for a few days. Yipee. 

Attention Span
So Spencer plays best when he is "working." He loves sorting things, putting things in order, and lining things up. They said that in order for him to complete tasks, he needs to know where his space is and what he can do in the space. Meaning, putting him in a chair with arms, so he can feel a sense of security and know his space allowance. Help him to see that he can play at the table that he is pushed up to. They did this during the evaluation and he sat there for 50 minutes!!! That's never happened before. So basically, in order to let him learn and play, we are going to let him "work"

The Autism group, TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication - Handicapped Children) has told us that we are trying to help him learn how to learn. We already know some of the things about how he can and likes to learn. We are going to use this knowledge to try and teach him the principles so he can learn by himself. (Just like teaching the correct principles and letting them govern themselves!)

This diagnosis doesn't change anything. The only thing that it did is allow us to find some support to help Spencer to keep being Spencer. He is the same cute, cuddly, funny, sweet, loving boy. He just learns a little different. We don't love him any less. In fact, if it were possible - we love him more! He's the best boy, and we will continue to fight for him. Love you, Spencey boo!