What is Autism? Officially it is Autism Spectrum Disorder or more commonly referred to as ASD. It’s sort of hard to explain… I will do my best and hope I don’t lose you. ASD is a spectrum disorder. This means a person can fall anywhere on this invisible line between low functioning or high functioning. This line is extremely complex and can take any number of twists and turns along the way.
Technically speaking, it is a mental disorder (neurological) that is characterized by difficulty in communicating, socializing, using language as well as understanding abstract concepts. Did I lose anyone with that? Let me break it down…
Difficulty communicating and using language can range from being non-verbal (like Z) to being verbal but not having the language capacity to carry on a conversation. Socializing is a huge part of it and can range from no interaction with peers to full interaction (but not to the extent society expects). High functioning people are often seen as oddballs and like they don’t really “fit in”. Abstract concepts is harder to explain but I can tell you that Z often has issues with cartoon drawings being the same as real life things. So he doesn’t seem to connect that a drawing of a dog is actually the same as a real dog he sees.
But let’s go back to the “Spectrum” aspect. Ever heard the saying “If you’ve met one person with Autism, you’ve met one person with Autism”? Hopefully now that makes sense. Each person displays a variety of symptoms. Add to that the reality that many with ASD have multiple diagnoses as well. The most common are ADD/ADHD, bi-polar, and epilepsy (to name a few). We are all on this path but driving different cars and travelling through different climates while under the same sun and moon.
What is Z’s diagnosis? Officially he has severe Autism. Well, I think the lingo has changed to say Autism Level 3 according to a recent Neurologist visit. He is always just off the charts for ADD (not enough for an official diagnosis). And they have deferred diagnosing on mental retardation since he won’t do the tests. He is 10 and they still have two open variables on the table which is really hard as a parent.
Here’s the thing… I totally disagree. I have disagreed with numerous professionals on this over numerous years. And that might be crazy and straight up denial, but I’m the mom. I’m the one who “sees” him, maybe with rose colored glasses, but not with textbook-outdated-blurry goggles.
What do I see? I see a kid that may not want to stack 5 blocks but give him 5 large stuffed animals and he will have them all balanced on a mini car. I see a kid that you think isn’t paying attention because there is no eye contact but that knows ALL of my hiding spots for his stickers and candy. I see a kid that won’t find the horse in a group of pictures but can find his special avocado-oil potato chips in the grocery aisle.
I see a kid that simply looks at the world differently. He’s on a whole other level. I see a world that needs to meet him there. I see tests that need to be upgraded. I see diagnoses that are made after a 3-hour session with these pre-conceived notions of what children SHOULD be doing. I see a failure on all of our parts for not considering alternatives.
Z is Z. There is more going on in his brain than we can even imagine or document. Unfortunately to some this makes him “less than” but I’m here to tell you that he is “more than” any of us put together.
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Tilted Axis 