Personal Narrative: My Personal Experience Of A Child With Autism
My personal experience as a mother to a child with autism
My son was born when I was 40 years old, after being married for 7 years. Becoming a mother was my greatest fear, and it took me a long time to overcome this fear. Most of my inhibition were related to the fear that something will be wrong with my child that will cause him a great suffer. The most terrifying idea for me was to have a child with special needs, such as Autism.
When my son was born it was the happiest day of my life. He was beautiful, smiling, and a very happy baby. It was only until my son was two years old when I started to notice some of his behaviors that looked untypical. Behaviors such as banging his head on the wall when he feels frustrated, watching television from the side angle of his eyes and delay in his speech. I immediately contact the local regional …show more content…
center for a child development diagnosis.
The regional center is a nonprofit agency that contract with the Department of Developmental Services. It provides services and supports for individuals with developmental disabilities. Most of the services are for children with developmentally delayed prior to the age of three. After that age, regional center keep only the clients who have lifelong impermanent of special needs, such as Autism, physical disability, or mentally delays.
The occupational therapist that was sent by regional center diagnosed him with moderate sensory processing disorder (SPD). Sensory processing refers to the way the nervous system collect messages from the senses and transfer it into proper motor responses. SPD, or sensory integration dysfunction refers to a disorder when the sensory brain do not place the sensory signals as proper response. Individual
with SPD struggle to process and cope when receiving sensory signals, which interrupt everyday functioning. Usually, individuals with SPD exhibit motor clumsiness, behavioral issues, anxiety, depression, academicals challenges, etc. (P. 1). Regional center provided my son services of both speech therapy and occupational therapy at our home. For a long time I hoped that he will overcome the sensory issues, and that will be his only diagnosis. Indeed, my son has SPD, but later on I learned that a lot of children with ASD also have sensory issues, and have dual diagnosis. Even though I did everything I could to provide him with the proper services and interventions, deep down inside me I knew that my son’s challenges are beyond the diagnosis of SPD, though, I was not able to acknowledge it. Something in me was not able to acknowledge my son’s real diagnosis, and perhaps I will never be able to. Later on, my son entered an early intervention program that is also provided by regional center for developmentally delayed children. During that time I was in complete denial, hoping all of this will turn out to be miss diagnosis. My anxiety started to elevate even more when as part of my drama therapy internship, I started working with mentally delayed adults, realizing the struggles of these individuals and their families.
When my son reach the age of three, the only diagnosis he had was moderate SPD, and speech delay. He also got an ear tubs operation, due to constant ear infections that might have case him for some hearing loss. At that time, the regional center dismissed us from services and from being their clients. By that point I realized I need to get him the ASD diagnosis from an independent evaluator, in order for him to receive the treatment and services that will help him to deal with his challenges. Though my medical health provider, a child neurologist diagnosed him with autism like symptoms. This was enough for the regional center to accept his as their clients and keep the services. Also at that age, the Los Angeles Unified school district (LAUSD) offer a special needs program for kids with developmental issues. Putting my son in this program was something I regret doing until this day. Apparently it seemed a very good program, with small amount of children in the classroom, large staff per student ratio, supported with services such as speech, occupational therapy, behavioral intervention, core curriculum, visual schedules, screen touch board etc. Yet, through the time he was in that program my son lost his minimal language and eye contact he has already acquired, and all of a sudden has degraded in his potty training and went back to diapers. I suspected something had happened in school, and more particularly a specific teacher assistant in the program, that was extremely rigid for my opinion for this young children. I started to investigate the teacher and other staff members, and they all claimed that nothing has happened in class, but I sensed from their looks and body language that something is off.
One afternoon, I received a phone call from the school’s principal, reporting me that my son was involved in a suspected child abuse incident at school, and that the case is still under investigation by the police. When I asked when it was reported, I discovered it was reported four month earlier by the behaviorist of the program, but the principle reported it to the police only recently. This meant that the abuse teacher assistant has kept working for the past four month in the school, until she was final got fired. According the law of California child abuse, a report has to be reported by 72 hours of the event.
Since it was too late for offering an immediate treatment for my son’s trauma, the social skills program he attended has provided him with a few therapy-play base sessions in order to process his experience, allowing him to acknowledge the message that this women will never be able to hurt him again.
When receiving the horrifying message on my son’s abuse, I felt like all my world collapsed, like something in me died, and that I was not able to feel happy and satisfied from my life. I felt as this experience traumatized me as much as my son was traumatized. Until this day I hold a lot of pain and anger on myself and the school system for exposing my son to an abusive adult. I felt betrayed not only by the teacher’s assistant who was the abuser, but also by the entire school system that covered and protected her, instead of protecting my son.
I had to immediately stop my drama therapy internship, and stopped sending my son to his school. Instead, I was working with him at home, trying to provide as much as hilling as possible. I used mostly drama therapy techniques of visual images and emphasized my own body movement when expressing emotions, in order to teach him recognizing his own feelings and later on recognizing other’s feelings as well. I also used games that are implementing back and forth interaction, and eye contact. I also used structured visual schedule and assignments. After a few weeks, I was requested to bring my son back to school. I agreed to do that only if I could join him at his class for a couple of weeks to help him readjust to the school environment. When spending time in the class, I started to document all the services that the program was supposed to provide him, and were not given. When reaching the Individualized Education Program (IEP), after consulting with a very well-known lawyer in the school system field, I presented to the IEP team my evidence of the dysfunction of the school program, in addition to the abuse. I requested that he will be transferred to a private non-public school setting that is specialized with children with special needs. After some negotiations, LAUSD eventually agreed to offer that school, but only if we drop any future allegations towards them in regard to the abuse. The new school helped my son to heal, regain his confidence and language skills, and after a couple of months to be potty trained again. For the following year the school was a good solution, but as my son lost the signs of trauma, and nicely progressed with his communication skills, I suspected that perhaps being around kids who did not mastered these skills yet, may delay his potential progress. Entering to kindergarten, I realize he is well capable of being in core level, but the school refuse to open a core class for young ages. In the middle of kindergarten, I took a big risk, and moved my son to a main stream local public school. This was a big risk, since I knew that if he may not fit into that new, less restricted environment, it may be almost impossible to get him his former school back. That year was full of struggles both for my son, but also for us with the school staff. His new teacher was very rigid, and in some times behaved inappropriately to my son. In addition, my son has never spent a lot of time with typical children, and the only way he learned interaction from his peers in his previous school was very aggressive. Eventually he was able to adjust to the new school environment, and has done a huge progress both academically and socially, that I have never imagined he was capable of, so in a retrospective taking that risk was definitely worth it.
This year, at first grade, he has a very nurturing and understanding teacher, and his behavior improved greatly. He is making new friends at school, and gradually making up for some academic gaps, but our struggles with the school system never ends. We still have to advocate on his behalf to get some services he is entitled for, and occasionally make sure he is not being discriminated for his challenges. Overall, I see how he enjoy his school, and how he progress there greatly. His favorite subjects are: art, math, and Legos. After school we provide him services of speech therapy, social emotional skills group, and at home applied behavioral analysis (ABA). Although I still experience a lot of stress with some ongoing challenges he has, he gives me great pride and comfort. He helps me grow as a person, and he is my guide to life and people.
My son was born when I was 40 years old, after being married for 7 years. Becoming a mother was my greatest fear, and it took me a long time to overcome this fear. Most of my inhibition were related to the fear that something will be wrong with my child that will cause him a great suffer. The most terrifying idea for me was to have a child with special needs, such as Autism.
When my son was born it was the happiest day of my life. He was beautiful, smiling, and a very happy baby. It was only until my son was two years old when I started to notice some of his behaviors that looked untypical. Behaviors such as banging his head on the wall when he feels frustrated, watching television from the side angle of his eyes and delay in his speech. I immediately contact the local regional …show more content…
center for a child development diagnosis.
The regional center is a nonprofit agency that contract with the Department of Developmental Services. It provides services and supports for individuals with developmental disabilities. Most of the services are for children with developmentally delayed prior to the age of three. After that age, regional center keep only the clients who have lifelong impermanent of special needs, such as Autism, physical disability, or mentally delays.
The occupational therapist that was sent by regional center diagnosed him with moderate sensory processing disorder (SPD). Sensory processing refers to the way the nervous system collect messages from the senses and transfer it into proper motor responses. SPD, or sensory integration dysfunction refers to a disorder when the sensory brain do not place the sensory signals as proper response. Individual
with SPD struggle to process and cope when receiving sensory signals, which interrupt everyday functioning. Usually, individuals with SPD exhibit motor clumsiness, behavioral issues, anxiety, depression, academicals challenges, etc. (P. 1). Regional center provided my son services of both speech therapy and occupational therapy at our home. For a long time I hoped that he will overcome the sensory issues, and that will be his only diagnosis. Indeed, my son has SPD, but later on I learned that a lot of children with ASD also have sensory issues, and have dual diagnosis. Even though I did everything I could to provide him with the proper services and interventions, deep down inside me I knew that my son’s challenges are beyond the diagnosis of SPD, though, I was not able to acknowledge it. Something in me was not able to acknowledge my son’s real diagnosis, and perhaps I will never be able to. Later on, my son entered an early intervention program that is also provided by regional center for developmentally delayed children. During that time I was in complete denial, hoping all of this will turn out to be miss diagnosis. My anxiety started to elevate even more when as part of my drama therapy internship, I started working with mentally delayed adults, realizing the struggles of these individuals and their families.
When my son reach the age of three, the only diagnosis he had was moderate SPD, and speech delay. He also got an ear tubs operation, due to constant ear infections that might have case him for some hearing loss. At that time, the regional center dismissed us from services and from being their clients. By that point I realized I need to get him the ASD diagnosis from an independent evaluator, in order for him to receive the treatment and services that will help him to deal with his challenges. Though my medical health provider, a child neurologist diagnosed him with autism like symptoms. This was enough for the regional center to accept his as their clients and keep the services. Also at that age, the Los Angeles Unified school district (LAUSD) offer a special needs program for kids with developmental issues. Putting my son in this program was something I regret doing until this day. Apparently it seemed a very good program, with small amount of children in the classroom, large staff per student ratio, supported with services such as speech, occupational therapy, behavioral intervention, core curriculum, visual schedules, screen touch board etc. Yet, through the time he was in that program my son lost his minimal language and eye contact he has already acquired, and all of a sudden has degraded in his potty training and went back to diapers. I suspected something had happened in school, and more particularly a specific teacher assistant in the program, that was extremely rigid for my opinion for this young children. I started to investigate the teacher and other staff members, and they all claimed that nothing has happened in class, but I sensed from their looks and body language that something is off.
One afternoon, I received a phone call from the school’s principal, reporting me that my son was involved in a suspected child abuse incident at school, and that the case is still under investigation by the police. When I asked when it was reported, I discovered it was reported four month earlier by the behaviorist of the program, but the principle reported it to the police only recently. This meant that the abuse teacher assistant has kept working for the past four month in the school, until she was final got fired. According the law of California child abuse, a report has to be reported by 72 hours of the event.
Since it was too late for offering an immediate treatment for my son’s trauma, the social skills program he attended has provided him with a few therapy-play base sessions in order to process his experience, allowing him to acknowledge the message that this women will never be able to hurt him again.
When receiving the horrifying message on my son’s abuse, I felt like all my world collapsed, like something in me died, and that I was not able to feel happy and satisfied from my life. I felt as this experience traumatized me as much as my son was traumatized. Until this day I hold a lot of pain and anger on myself and the school system for exposing my son to an abusive adult. I felt betrayed not only by the teacher’s assistant who was the abuser, but also by the entire school system that covered and protected her, instead of protecting my son.
I had to immediately stop my drama therapy internship, and stopped sending my son to his school. Instead, I was working with him at home, trying to provide as much as hilling as possible. I used mostly drama therapy techniques of visual images and emphasized my own body movement when expressing emotions, in order to teach him recognizing his own feelings and later on recognizing other’s feelings as well. I also used games that are implementing back and forth interaction, and eye contact. I also used structured visual schedule and assignments. After a few weeks, I was requested to bring my son back to school. I agreed to do that only if I could join him at his class for a couple of weeks to help him readjust to the school environment. When spending time in the class, I started to document all the services that the program was supposed to provide him, and were not given. When reaching the Individualized Education Program (IEP), after consulting with a very well-known lawyer in the school system field, I presented to the IEP team my evidence of the dysfunction of the school program, in addition to the abuse. I requested that he will be transferred to a private non-public school setting that is specialized with children with special needs. After some negotiations, LAUSD eventually agreed to offer that school, but only if we drop any future allegations towards them in regard to the abuse. The new school helped my son to heal, regain his confidence and language skills, and after a couple of months to be potty trained again. For the following year the school was a good solution, but as my son lost the signs of trauma, and nicely progressed with his communication skills, I suspected that perhaps being around kids who did not mastered these skills yet, may delay his potential progress. Entering to kindergarten, I realize he is well capable of being in core level, but the school refuse to open a core class for young ages. In the middle of kindergarten, I took a big risk, and moved my son to a main stream local public school. This was a big risk, since I knew that if he may not fit into that new, less restricted environment, it may be almost impossible to get him his former school back. That year was full of struggles both for my son, but also for us with the school staff. His new teacher was very rigid, and in some times behaved inappropriately to my son. In addition, my son has never spent a lot of time with typical children, and the only way he learned interaction from his peers in his previous school was very aggressive. Eventually he was able to adjust to the new school environment, and has done a huge progress both academically and socially, that I have never imagined he was capable of, so in a retrospective taking that risk was definitely worth it.
This year, at first grade, he has a very nurturing and understanding teacher, and his behavior improved greatly. He is making new friends at school, and gradually making up for some academic gaps, but our struggles with the school system never ends. We still have to advocate on his behalf to get some services he is entitled for, and occasionally make sure he is not being discriminated for his challenges. Overall, I see how he enjoy his school, and how he progress there greatly. His favorite subjects are: art, math, and Legos. After school we provide him services of speech therapy, social emotional skills group, and at home applied behavioral analysis (ABA). Although I still experience a lot of stress with some ongoing challenges he has, he gives me great pride and comfort. He helps me grow as a person, and he is my guide to life and people.