Life after the diagnosis
A week ago we got the news we have been waiting for since August. Our daughter has Autism. Specifically PDD,NOS and ADHD. Don’t know those acronyms? Consider yourself lucky. They stand for Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (she has autism but we don’t know what kind) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Life since the diagnosis has not been easy. There are just so many questions. Why does she have it? What did we do wrong? Can we treat it? How do we treat it? Will she ever have a” normal” life? All these questions have been the center of my life for the past 9 days. So far she has been to the doctor and we are trying to figure out the best course of treatment but her doctor doesn’t know what to do so we have to wait until the middle of February to be seen by the developmental pediatrician to get some answers. We have also gotten the ball rolling to get her enrolled in some programs to get her the services she so desperately needs. So right now there is not much to do except love her and try to do the best we can. We are handling it the best we know how and though our life doesn’t seem like our life we are all coping to the best of our ability. So far we are looking into some herbal supplements to help get her symptoms under control so she can feel better and are also looking into ABA therapy to go along with her speech and occupational therapy. Other than that life is moving on and we are just taking it one day at a time.
Keep your chin up, love.
What did you do wrong? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. As hard and discomforting as it sounds, God knew this would happen before she took her first breath.
Will she ever have a normal life? I’m convinced that, as time goes on, you will begin to forget the diagnosis. She will always have little quirks, but those will become a part of who she is, not what she “has”. So, yes. She will have a normal life.
Can you treat it? I think it’s process of recovery. It just takes a little longer and traditional medicine won’t fix it.
Are you an amazing momma? Absolutely. You can do this…and you will be a light and encouragement to other families who have to walk through this.
Ya know, the first book I ever read (at which point I was still in denial about the “A” word) was “Unraveling the Mysteries of Autism and Pervasive Development Disorder”. It’s a good read, one I highly recommend, if you haven’t already.
Just keep doing what you’re doing….love that little girl with everything you have.