BJ

I've known that my son is very different for a long time.  He was diagnosed with Autism since he was around 3 or 4.  I honestly don't remember.  I remember having a beautiful healthy baby boy.  I remember breastfeeding him.  I remember when he took his first step.  I remember making him laugh and smile.

I don't know exactly know when I noticed that he was doing a lot of different things.  One day I recognized that he wasn't speaking.  He would gesture so I knew what he wanted, but no matter how much I encouraged him, he would not speak.  

And then there was daycare.  BJ was my only child that I immediately put into daycare.  My oldest son didn't start until after he was a year old.  My youngest son has never been.  But BJ started daycare when he was a few weeks old.  I was a working single mom, at the time with two kids.  

To be honest the first few months of his life went by so quick and was really a big blur because all I did was work, clean and work some more.

He spent so much time in daycare they noticed something was wrong well before I did.  They sent home notes about his behavior stating he was very unresponsive at times and disruptive.  I didn't know what to think of this.  He responded differently, I recognized but he was never unresponsive.

They ended up referring me to a specialists and after several extensive tests with different doctors BJ was diagnosed with a "learning disability".  Honestly, Autism didn't make it into my vocabulary until years later.

I didn't know what to make of everything.  From a distance, BJ looked like a normal child.  But the closer you got the easier it was for you to spot the differences.  

Because I was so uneducated on the subject for learning disabilities and autism I did everything the doctors, teachers, counselors said.  And for the past 12 years we've lived a very passive life.

This year, however I've decided to do things differently!  BJ is now 12 and I guess as he's getting closer to adulthood I've gotten more concerned for his future.  

I've recently removed him from public schools to take charge of his education.  I'm changing his diet and looking to reach out to our local autism community.

The future is really looking brighter for our little family.  My one biggest hope is that I can get BJ to a place where he can survive and function in this world.  I look forward to connecting with other families and hopefully helping anyone by sharing our stories.

BJ's Mom!