Autism isn't all about the six-year-old who can play Piano Man better than Billy Joel. Autism can be hard. Autism can be sad. Autism can be messy. Autism can be violent. Autism can be isolating.
This article really hits home to me. Working with kiddos on the spectrum is challenging - but what is more frustrating is to see the lack of education and understanding out there. It breaks my heart to see kiddos who deserve the chance for more services and more assistance missing out because of the fear their families experience when the “A word” is mentioned. Understandably so, it is a daunting and uneasy feat to begin the process of neurological testing to diagnose a child on the spectrum. But it makes me so sad each day to see how much the fear of isolation affects these families, sometimes to the point where it prevents them from moving forward with pursuing a diagnosis and obtaining the effective and necessary services out there.
I dream of a "one-day” where we truly are aware of the full spectrum that Autism brings. It is not one specific experience, but a vast and diverse spectrum of functional levels, each with their own individual impact on a child and their family. Here’s hoping that one day, inclusion and acceptance and true awareness are the new “typical” in our society.
