An Update on Waylon

Waylon has had a speech problem for a little while now. He echo's a lot and he's had difficulty with articulation.

We also noticed that he occasionally has trouble making eye contact, and it can take him up to 2 hours to complete a meal because he can get so distracted. He had some other struggles that concerned us as well so Cameron and I discussed it and decided to get Waylon tested for ADHD.

I went down to the Naval Hospital and filled out a 2 page form of my concerns and Waylon's behavioral patterns. After a week I got a call and was told that they usually don't test children under the age of 5, so I shouldn't have been given a form, but I was and the concerns I have are consistent with a child who has ADHD. So they asked me to come in and get him tested. 

After waiting nearly a month, we were finally able to get him tested on Tuesday October 30th. After a 2 hour evaluation, lots of questions and feeling like we were right in our accusation that Waylon had ADHD, the therapist sat across from me and handed me a paper. At the top read " Autism Spectrum Disorder". She looked at me matter-of-factly, like it was obvious that Waylon was autistic. 

She could see my shock and confusion and asked if it had even crossed my mind that he could be autistic. I remember my mom briefly mentioning it a couple months prior, but I brushed it off because I didn't see any signs of Autism in him. But as a parent, it's difficult to see signs when you are so used to those traits being part of their personality.

After the therapist explained why she diagnosed him as autistic, so many things started to make sense. Why he organizes and categorizes everything. Why he shakes his hands when he's stressed or excited. Why he flaps his arms when he's happy. Why he doesn't understand when he gets too close to other kids, and why he doesn't understand when they get frustrated by it. Why his meltdowns are over the top and can have a hard time calming down afterwards. Why he echo's every sound or phrase. Why he reenacts every show or movie. Why his imaginative play is pretty much non-existent. Why he has difficulty with change, and why he insists on having the same cereal every morning, even after I've made him eggs or pancakes.

It took a good 24 hours for all this to sink in. I was slightly overwhelmed at first, and I knew our lives would become very busy very soon.

Having previously worked with remedial children, and occasionally helped with autistic children, I knew how much work was going to go into helping Waylon. 

Our families have been so supportive and helpful. And honestly, I'm glad we received this news now so we can get him the help he needs before he starts school.

This week I made Waylon some calming bottles filled with a mixture of glitter glue, fine glitter and water, and they have helped tremendously with his meltdowns. Having been informed of his autism has allowed me to do research and find the best way to help him, and it's a relief to finally know how to help him. 

This journey will be a learning process, and it won't be easy, but I know everything will be alright.

Any words of advice are welcome and wanted!