Thursday, March 21, 2013
Kids on the Autism Spectrum each have unique gifts—I think I found one of my son's.
When you have a child of the Autism Spectrum it’s hard to avoid becoming consumed by comparing your child with typically developing children. IEP (Individualized Education Plan) meetings don’t help, you sit around a table with professionals working with your child on a daily basis at school and discuss the ways in which your child is developing and meeting goals for his age, almost all of his goals are goals that come naturally for other children. For example one of the goals on my son’s IEP is to have a back and forth conversation with a peer without prompting. That doesn’t seem like much, I know, but recently when my son, L, had a friend over and I heard them playing in his room I stood out of eyesight to count how many times they had a …
Thursday, February 7, 2013
What is a biking family to do when not all of our members are able to ride?
Milestones that are met by our children are documented and recorded—our child’s pediatrician informs us of when those milestones typically happen based on recorded data that coincides with a particular age. Baby should be rolling over at six months old, walking at around one, at three years old should be able to speak in multi-word sentences and by four years old should ride a tricycle. Every parent has expectations of their children crossing milestones around the same age that they themselves crossed that milestone. Walking. Talking. Loosing teeth. Grandparents are called to confirm, “Do you remember when I lost my first tooth?” I grew up in a bicycling family; our family would go on week long bicycling trips while other families went to…
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
We could all use a reminder to show gratitude to the person handing you a gift.
It's a struggle for every parent to instill in their children thankfulness and gratitude. Every year before family arrives for a birthday party or Christmas dinner I have to have the pep talk with my children that goes something like this, "Even if the gift you open isn't something you really wanted you must smile, look the person in the eye and say thank you." I have this talk because my oldest son, L, is on the Autism Spectrum and one of his unique qualities is that he doesn't have filters. He doesn't have the ability to lie, he can't comprehend the little white lies that we all say in order to make other people feel good—"It's exactly what I wanted" or "I love it, thank you!"—instead he's brutally honest. I was chatting with his teacher…
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
A 9-year-old's heart-gripping conversation with a soldier at the Community Center—follow his lead and say, "Thank you."
Almost weekly my oldest son, L, who is on the Autism Spectrum has a new career that he wants to be when he grows up. His career dreams used to last much longer. We had an entire year of him wanting to be an engineer, then he dreamed of being a scientist. His longest running dream career yet has been an astronaut, but it was recently was overthrown by being a soldier. It's hard to explain his desire to be a soldier. We aren’t a military family, and we don’t know anyone currently in the military. He doesn’t even have a cool uncle in uniform that he looks up to, who comes to family functions. But when asked the “what do you want to be when you grow up?” question, the first thing out of his mouth is—soldier. As school was starting, he met a…
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Parents of special needs children often try to compare them to other children—but Autism makes this impossible.
Children on the autism spectrum can have unique interests. My son, who is on that spectrum, has gone though many phases. Some have lasted longer than others, and not every one has been socially acceptable for a boy. The train and superhero phase was pretty easy to accommodate, but when he decided he wanted a butterfly birthday party one year, it was not exactly easy to pull off for a boy. I’m not proud to admit that I convinced him to go a different direction and recycled some of the leftover superhero decorations from the year before. Accepting your special needs child doesn’t happen overnight. It happens over time. It doesn't come naturally for any parent to accept all of their quirks and interests. It’s hard in the beginning to navigate…
Monday, May 21, 2012
Greenbelt mom, Gretchen Schock, says "There isn't an easy way to do it, but they have to hear it from you."
During a recent mammogram, the technician unexpectedly discovered a mass in my left breast. After the appropriate number of images were taken, I was moved into another room to have an ultrasound performed. I couldn’t see the screen, but the technician had a permanent furrow in her brow as she swiped the wand back and forth over the same area on my breast. She stopped only to type something on the machine, and then she put the wand back to that exact spot. My heart began to race, and I was told the radiologist will speak to me in a few minutes. The kind eyes of the radiologist and her directness about the mass put me at ease, and she assured me that at my age it’s most likely a benign fibroadenoma and just to be sure they would like to get …
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Gretchen Schock says the nonprofit Music for Autism, enabled her family to enjoy a concert for the first time!
Children on the Autism Spectrum often find it difficult to process information gathered through their senses to appropriately react to them. My oldest son, who is on the Autism Spectrum, has such a Sensory Processing Disorder and struggles with a sensitivity to noise that usually prevents him from enjoying music. Last year he wore noise-reducing headphones in his mainstream music class. A classmate made fun of his headphones and now he refuses to wear them. He then grew his hair long to cover his ears to muffle the sound around him. My son looks "normal"; he acts "normal" most of the time. He doesn't flap his hands or have other behaviors that are red flags for children on the Autism Spectrum. Many people don't realize he's on the spectrum…
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
April—Autism Awareness Month—is the time to learn more about the disorder.
I am a huge advocate for both my children; my oldest is on the Autism Spectrum. I believe many people are scared of the diagnosis. I was in the beginning as well. Though I also was searching for answers. Why won’t my son talk to me like the other children his age? Why does he sit and stare off into space for long amounts of time? When my oldest son, L, was diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum it was because I was determined to have someone help me learn how to parent my child. The diagnosis gave me the ability to understand Autism and it opened a window into my child’s mind. One day a parent confided in me that her child was recently diagnosed being on the Autism Spectrum. I told her to treat the diagnosis the same way you would if your doctor…
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
A best friend for a child on the Autism Spectrum is a gift like no other.
When I rounded the corner on my walk to school to pick up the kids, I saw L sitting next to his best friend B. When they saw me approach, both boys came running up. “Can B come over to play today? Please!!” L asked. “Sure, we need to ask B’s mom or dad first though,” I replied. B quickly interjected: “We already did—He said 'Yes.' He’s over there.” And off all three boys went, running down the sidewalk to our house. My youngest son, Z, tried unsuccessfully to be a part of their pack. Although he plays well with older kids, it’s not the same with L and B. L is on the Autism Spectrum and his friend also has some speech delays. The two of them speak their own language and live in a world together, and it’s hard for other kids to be a part of …
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
A child on the Autism Spectrum needs to be taught proper social behaviors. Today he shares a wise lesson.
It's a beautiful Sunday; the sun is shining with not a cloud in the sky. I've planned today to be mellow and laid-back, because Monday begins a new routine of going to camp instead of school. Typically a change in routine – even if it's a fun change in routine – causes my oldest son, who is on the Autism Spectrum, to behave in a heightened anxious or else emotionally sensitive state. I dare say it's been a perfect day. Everyone has gotten along; there haven’t been any arguments. The kids are fastened in their booster seats engaging in idle chitchat about the cars and people around them as we sit in traffic on the beltway. For no particular reason, I don't have the radio on. Instead of focusing my attention on an NPR newscast I am eves-…
Gretchen Schock
8:54 am on Sunday, February 10, 2013
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