Originally posted May 26 2018 (on old site)
I would like to make a statement that at the present time, we do not have a diagnosis of what we are dealing with. We have some ideas and for those reading this, please feel free to comment on my post here. This will be my first in a series of posts in regards to my son – and it is the first time I have posted in depth about him.
Quite a few months ago, my wife and I were going through something that a lot of people before us have gone through, and many more will go through after us. It is something that we as parents fear more than anything, and also may be in denial about from the start. There is something wrong with my child. We didn’t really think anything too much until late last year, when our son, nearly two – wasn’t hitting some of the milestone’s he should have been. He started walking much earlier than his big sister did – at 14 months – she at 17. But unlike his big sister, who was talking before she was walking – there was no words coming from him.
It had already been decided that I was going to be a part time stay at home dad to do the kindergarten runs with our daughter. I had, and still do have suspicions about our son. I decided to take the first step in January this year, and do two things – enroll our son in swimming lessons, and take that first visit to the Dr.
My first initial thought was that it was his hearing. And this will be the basis of this post.
The main reason we thought it was his hearing was due to the lack of response we were getting from him. He would not listen when we called him, he would sit close to the TV when his favorite movies were being played, and a basic lack of receptive skills. I had visited a few local hearing centers – one flat out did not do children under a certain age, the other only did with a GP referral – so off I went to the GP.
My overthinking brain was on high alert as I was sitting in the waiting room. “No you’re silly, there’s nothing wrong with him” “he’s a just a slow developer, he’ll be fine” was what I was expecting to be met with. But the exact opposite occurred. Sincere empathy and understanding and a very big “good on you” for wanting what was best for your son. He recommended a clinic that was a little out the way, but was one of the best places to go in the city for a hearing loss diagnosis. I booked the appointment, and a few weeks later we were sitting in another waiting room.
The test did not go well. While by no means did he fail the test, he did not pass. We were asked to come back in a couple more weeks to get a second opinion. Life happened for those few weeks, and we went back. This time both my wife and I were there, and we got a much more positive outcome. A pass. We had ticked a box of what is not the cause of his delay.
While this was going on, we had also scrapped swimming lessons. Sadly he was just not participating in them as much as we had liked, and was hindering the class. As much as I want to admit it was for his betterment, it was also for my own sanity – as I was in the water with him at all times.
He is now happily enrolled in a Kinder”gym” – a room full of kids activities and equipment (which is also twice the amount of time per week, and half the cost) – but is less structured, and allows him to play at his own terms.
More to follow in due time.
Thanks for reading.
Parenting Autism in Adelaide 