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To Give Hope

This is my second post on my new blog. I would like to give hope to those parents out there that are just having their child diagnosed with Aspergers. To find out your child has Aspergers is a lot to digest. Beginning to read books about what other parents have experienced can be horrifying. But remember, each child is different. Not only are they unique human beings, they have unique situations. There is a lot to be said for what other co-morbid (which means co-existing... although I wish the reference books would not use the word morbid about my child) conditions each child has as well. My child is doing very well today, this month, this chapter in his life which is the high school years. My child has Co-Existing conditions. His list goes like this: Aspergers, ADHD, Sensory Integration Disorder and Depression. Of this list, depression is by far the most debilitating condition. This winter is the first winter in three years he hasn't been suicidal. So, again, it depends on what other conditions your child may have, his/her unique situation, what services you get for your child, how soon you acquire them, etc etc etc to what your child's outcome will be. Don't let stories of one child cause you to feel scared and hopeless. Your child's story will most definetely be unique to your child.

The Beginning

The day I found out my child had Asperger's Syndrome, I was devastated.... It felt like all my dreams and hopes for him were now crushed. I was in mourning for the child I thought I had. I felt guilty. How did I not know earlier? All the times I had been frustrated with him... All the times I had been mad at him.... And now it all made sense. He wasn't being disrespectful. He wasn't being difficult. He wasn't being lazy. He was suffering. He was struggling. He was doing the best he could. In some ways it felt good to actually have a name to what was going on with my child, but in other ways it just became scary. I again mourned for the "perfectly normal" child I thought I had given birth to. It was a very scary time.