A motherly instinct is a real thing. A very strange out of body experience in certain situations. My son was born 6 days past his due date, via an emergency c-section. My motherly instincts didn't kick in prior to, otherwise I would have opted out for the induction. Any who, MyKail was born and I got to meet him 24 hours after (stupid hospital policies about having a fever...I mean I did just go through a lot!) Over the next year of his life I saw my son grow, learn, progress, be mischievous, and just be!
For his first birthday check up, the doctor mentioned that he should be saying more words than the few he was, but being that I was a first time mom without any knowledge of how common speech delays are in adolescent boys, I raised concerns. I had been biased on vaccines prior to his birth. So far, he's only had a few of them, because all it took was one for me to notice a difference in my son. He started to stare into space vaguely, and the few words that he did know, seemed to had vanished.
I was confused to say the least, but I got my research on. I came across numerous of articles that discussed the symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder--MyKail hit a few on that list. Not to panic nor worry, because in my eyes that's discrediting my prayers for my children. I approached his doctor about my concerns (at this time MyKail was about 22 months), we did a MCHAT (Modified checklist for Autism in Toddlers) and he didn't pass to the point that the doctor recommended further evaluations so she recommended speech for him.
MyKail started speech in Oct. of 2018 and continued until Jan. of 2019. At this point, I'm pregnant with my 2nd born and not even aware of the storm brewing in front of me. BUT, I knew something was off with my sonshine. Screw the doctors, because-between you and I, I don't fully trust western medicine. I took it upon myself to figure things out for my son! I had only knew of 1 parent who had a child on the spectrum--she was the first reach out for help. JLisa, you know you're a God send; thank you always.
From there, I started the evaluation process. This was the most draining and daunting process ever! So many repetitive questions, so many appointments, so very little help along the way. I, personally, think one should always get multiple options from different doctors, or in life in general. I found 3 different centers for MyKail to be evaluated for Autism and on Oct. 22nd, 201, the day before his 3rd birthday, we got his official diagnosis. That's where out story begins.
