#High functioning autism meltdown free#

People don’t realize just how amazing your autistic child can be. Then you feel bad for even thinking that and quickly remind yourself just how much you love your child. Sometimes you catch yourself watching other kids your child’s age and secretly wish your child was like them. You don’t have access to support from other moms who understand. And while unfortunately there are more children diagnosed with autism today than ever before, you don’t have the connections everyone seems to think you have with the autistic community. You can’t just go on a playdate with another mom and her children because you don’t know what your child will do. It can be very lonely to have a child with autism. When your child acknowledges your feelings or volunteers a hug, you find yourself giddy with joy! People take for granted things that amaze you. And you are beyond thrilled when you finally see him making a friend. You inwardly cry with her when she is teased or rejected by other children (and also fume and make all sorts of inward threats to the “evil” child who hurt your own). Your heart breaks for him when he is struggling and you rejoice when he has a victory. But you can barely handle what you are already doing. You so badly want your child to succeed in life! There are some days when you just want to quit.īut you love your child so much and would do just about anything for him or her.

#High functioning autism meltdown free#

And there may be diet changes, perhaps a gluten free, dairy free diet, which is a lot of work, time-consuming, and expensive. This might involve supplements your child needs to take daily (something he isn’t very fond of, creating yet another daily challenge).

Even now, you aren’t 100% certain this is the right med for your child, because very rarely is there a magic pill that people seem to think exists. That required you making careful lists of symptoms to report back to the doctor and many trials and errors. So you finally agreed to meds, but the battle wasn’t over. How medication was a last resort, but you had to do something to help. How you watched him struggle so and it just broke your heart that other things weren’t helping. They have no idea how much you agonized about putting your son on meds. They judge and say “Oh you went the ‘easy’ route.” But that is the farthest thing from the truth. People don’t realize just how gut-wrenching it is to put your child on medication. There are so many options you might be doing with your child, and often times, you use a combination. Your child may be on a natural supplement regimen and have dietary restrictions. And then to not feel guilty when something fails. But it’s hard to not try to make it perfect when it’s your child at stake. You won’t be perfect, that’s a guarantee. There are about 4 million results if you google “high functioning autism.” It’s up to you to weed through all the “noise” and figure out what will help your child. It’s a scary responsibility.Įveryone has an opinion, even those who have no right to say anything about autism. You must be an advocate for him in a world that doesn’t make it easy. Yes, there are experts and doctors who can advise you. And it’s up to you to figure out a way to help him. Your child might change overnight and it’s up to you to figure out what’s going on with him. Life is always unexpected, but with autistic kids, there’s an additional wrench thrown in the mix. You know there is no blame, especially on yourself, but, as a mom, it’s hard to not have regrets. You might secretly feel guilty that your daughter is autistic. And every time you have to explain to someone, your heart breaks a little. Yet it is part of who she is.Įven though you’ve learned to embrace “autism” because it’s brought answers and help to your child, it’s never easy admitting he is “less than perfect” in society’s eyes. You may hate using the term “autistic” when describing your child because you don’t want it to define who she is. And you also secretly feel guilty for even considering those thoughts because a mom, shouldn’t you be his biggest cheerleader? But when they are? It’s very apparent.Īnd you wonder, secretly in your heart, if your child will ever grow up to become a productive, functioning member of society. They may not always be obvious to everyone around you. Challenges that very much affect him/her and your entire family. You may even feel guilty for using the term “autism” when your child is far from “Rain Man.” You may feel like you don’t deserve to use that term when others are far worse off and your child is verbal and may not even need an aide at school.īut your child with high functioning autism has challenges. You are part of a unique group who may not quite fit in with the traditional autism community.