Tuesday, August 6, 2013

The Good Side of Autism

I know that there are moments where autism can just consume and overwhelm one's life...

The day to day, the non-stop worrying and jumping and everything that you as a parent do to stay on alert and give your child what he/she needs can sometimes be exhausting and draining. You sometimes pray for bedtime just to get a break and even then its not a real break because you're still on alert in case your child starts to walk out of his/her room or gets sick in the middle of the night.

It never ends.

Even for me - and my kids live full-time with their dad & step-mom.

On visitation days I cram activities, discipline, education, and therapy all into a few hours. When they are not with me I'm constantly checking my phone for updates or making sure I have signal in case of an emergency.

So much that I had an anxiety episode this passed week because my old cell phone was not working and I was scared something with the kids was going to happen and they wouldn't be able to reach me.

I have since replaced the phone - I am officially an iPhone user now - goodbye Android!!

Well, back to the point...

Autism never ends for the families - no matter where the children are, it never ends.

But this weekend I was reminded of the good side of autism.

Yes, there is a good side.

Like this...


I love watching Silly spin. He is just content in his little world. Did you see that smile on his face?! It was priceless!! That is the innocence and perfection of autism.


And this....



Silly loves to sing! That is when his voice comes out and you can hear him. He is a child of very little words but when a song connects with him, he just sings. Remember this video I posted before?  Yes, he is just amazing. Music is his connection. (That giggle in the background - that was Baby Girl. I love her giggles!)

And then there is this...


Isn't it amazing how he can do this? Buddy can script any episode of any television show (generally though it is Thomas and Friends), word for word, with perfect rhythm - he even makes the train sounds (I bet you didn't catch that did you?). It puts me in awe every time! -- the video was actually longer but I couldn't email the whole thing from my phone so I had to send myself a shortened version. I'll try to get the full one up soon.

Then you have Monkey who just laughs with abandon at the silliest of things and wants to learn everything that is going on around him.

And Bug who just draws and draws and can tell you all about the different Jagers from Pacific Rim and the sharks and dinosaurs and so many other things. He is a pool of knowledge.

Yes, autism is not all negative...even when it seems like it is, its not.

13 comments:

  1. Awww, the singing was too sweet. :)

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  2. He is so beautiful! I loved these videos. (on a side note I went from Android to iPhone too and it was earth-shattering). My daughter's good friend has autism and she really, really loves playing with him. She likes the way his mind thinks of interesting viewpoints she hadn't yet thought of - ways to play with her toys and costumes and swings. I like that too. Watching the two of them play is heartening.

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  3. I would never think of autism as all negative and yes, there is something amazing about a child with autism who is content in his own world, in a world where no child seems content these days. Your son is beautiful!

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  4. I agree...it can be overwhelming. But there are moments of great gratitude. My son loves to script, too. Lord, if there were a test in All Things Star Wars -- he'd be at the head of the class. ;-)

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  5. What great videos! I hate to think of autism as negative. It's just a different experience. I can imagine that it is overwhelming for you at times, Krystal. I love to see the joy you get from being their mom!

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  6. What an encouragement to other Moms who have autistic children. Positivity is the key for any Mom. Found you through SITS.

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  7. There are good sides to everything. Thanks for showing your personal joys. Enjoy your SITS Day.

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  8. I totally caught the engine sounding train!!! I caught it all, my friend. Every single bright shiny piece of him.

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  9. Too cute! Thanks for sharing the videos. Happy SITS day!

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  10. So glad to have found you, we are also learning each day the ups and downs of our daughter's journey with autism. There are days you just want to scream in frustration, and other times you tear up in amazement... I hope you had a wonderful SITS Day! Keep being strong!

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  11. Thank you for sharing the beauty you see. If only we could all see each other with eyes of love; what a different world this would be.

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  12. Thank you for sharing! Everything has a silver lining.

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  13. My BFF adopted a beautiful little girl from China who is autistic and almost completely blind. She is only 5, so when she "spins" she is pretty much break dancing on the floor. It is amazing how much joy she gets from doing what seems to be such a simple action.

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