Where to start... My intention of writing this blog has several reasons. Though I will be writing most about my son's journey, sorry if I become a little personal on my blog here, and maybe express what I truly feel at times for this is not only his journey but as a parent it is also mine..... I pray that it may also give information, help someone who is going through the same thing or spread awareness.
As a mom, I love my son and want the best for him, thus the decision to see a child developmental pedia came into play. That was the new start of the rest of our parenting lives for Eli.
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| Eli, a few minutes after his birth |
September 16, 2014 at 6pm, we were waiting outside of the child developmental pedia clinic. Eli was the last patient to be checked and we're glad that we were able to secure a schedule since most appointments for specialist such as this takes months before you can get a slot.
The first specialist that I phoned already transferred to Manila, and there is only one doctor here in Pampanga for children with special needs. She was the one to check on Eli, She made eli play with some toys and observed, she also asked me some questions about my pregnancy and about Eli's delivery at birth. By the time we left her office, Eli was diagnosed.
It was Autism Spectrum Disorder. I wasn't surprised nor was my husband. In the past two years that Eli came into our lives we watched him grow. First 9 months was a fine development, but it must be somewhere around the 6th or the 7th where I begin to notice something different about him. The times when I was trying to teach him how to say "Mama" and "Papa" he doesn't respond. Instead he would laugh, like, "he thinks Mama is trying to make funny noises." Peek-a-boo and close-open were fine little games but when Eli turned 1, his motor skills with walking is delayed, his speech also.
Once when Eli was 10 months old, my mom mentioned that she wonders why Eli doesn't speak yet nor try to mimic speech. My husband and I tried to put it off thinking well, he will soon speak and communicate with us once he grows a little bit more. We also decided not to bring him to a specialist just yet because we thought that the doctor might just over-analyze him with a condition that might not be even there as he grows along... that is until two weeks ago.
Eli started walking when he turned 1 year and 6 months old. He still doesn't communicate well until now. He has echolalia, it all started with some gibberish sounds that he keeps on repeating every time. He also does repetitive things, like pouring a small pail of water into our bathroom toilet. These past few weeks it was asking for a toothbrush, but instead of brushing he only eats the paste on the brush. Potty training was such a pain, I wonder how can he ever not follow my instruction to let me know if he is about to, it should be easy with his age right? but it wasn't.
When he began to walk, he would tip toe, but now I'm glad it's less. His play use to include piling his alphabet blocks on top of each other to make a tall tower, and he would cry when it falls down. He would line his little toy cars. He would lie on his stomach on the floor and move his toy car back and forth observing its wheels. One time he lined up all the coke bottles that were put away near our kitchen sink.
He would flap his hands, jump up and down or squeal so loud to exhibit his excitement. Maybe this he does to soothe or make him feel good about himself. He did this a lot when his cousins came to visit a few months ago while they were watching "Frozen." He would join the other children at primary class at church every Sunday, but it seems as though he is more interested at what the other child is holding than playing with him or her. When his name is being called, he pays no attention to it, he is just always distracted. He also seems to be fine playing just by himself.
As a mother, I can only hope the best for my son. Eli is a sweet boy, he likes hugs. he is also funny and is always happy. Though sometimes it annoys me when he would just simply grab me or his papa's arm whenever he needs help, we all need to work on our patience to teach him how to ask help properly. He can read words even before he can communicate, but he simply doesn't talk; And because he's having a hard time communicating, every time we pray, I learned to be satisfied with even just a simple "Amen" from him. He is also very good with those little puzzle game apps on our android phones.
They say that autism is a lifetime thing, I sure hope it can still be overcome. My son will have to undergo therapy in the next weeks for six months. It's for his behavioral and life skills management. I hope things will be better for him for his autism didn't change the way I feel about him.
Three weeks ago, I was invited over email by Joyla Ofrecia to a Seminar that was held yesterday. At first I was hesitant if I would have to but since I thought that my husband's paycheck was able to stretch out for me to pay the fee, I gave in. I decided to attend only a week after Eli's diagnosis, and only informed Miss Joyla on Friday night of my attendance.
