Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi everyone
Our little boy is 18 months old and we strongly suspect he has autism (two professionals have told us he has a lot of red flags and he scores about 15 out of 20 on the m-chat questionnaire but we are still on the waiting list for an official diagnosis which is around a 2-year wait where we live in the West Midlands).
As my husband and I begin to process what autism means for our little boy and our family, our main goal is to find other parents going through similar things, people that really get the situation, how frustrating getting a diagnosis can be and how limited the support is during this “limbo” stage. As we’re first time parents we felt we’d hardly got going on our parenting journey before we started feeling very isolated by our circumstances, and now find it hard to relate to our peers with neurotypical children as the differences feel so stark, so socialising as a family no longer feels practical or enjoyable as our little boy has no interest in other children (or adults) and having to constantly explain his behaviour to others feels both frustrating and upsetting for everyone involved.
At the moment it feels a bit like we’re the only parents going through this but obviously I know that’s not true. I’m really keen to reach out to others who feel in the same boat, who’d like to find new friends to share the journey with and want to find a “new normal” together. Our little boy is our world so we just want to find a way to make our world his, too.
As I said we’re based in the West Midlands but also looking for virtual friends too. I strongly believe that finding our tribe will make us stronger together as we face the many challenges ahead, and knowing we’re not alone feels so important right now.
Really looking forward to hearing from you, future friends!
Lucy
Hi Lucy,
I'm from the West Midlands too. My son is 4 years old and undergoing assessment for autism. Most people reckon he has autism although getting a diagnosis is turning out to be rather long winded. I know what you mean about being unable to relate to parents of so-called 'normal' children, as my son is developmentally behind in many ways. I don't really think there is any such thing as 'normal' anyway as those that appear developmentally normal may have other issues such as epilepsy, diabetes, etc. I do agree it's good thing to get to know other parents of ASD children as we share a lot of the same issues, e.g., dealing with behavior and access to education, so can share tips/frustrations/laugh about it. I'm not sure if this forum has a private messaging facility - if it does, you're welcome to drop me a line if you'd like to chat.
Hi
Thanks so much for getting in touch, so helpful to hear from someone who’s probably also battling with the same local authority! I’m new to this forum too but I think it does have a private message function so I’ll try and message you now. (I just updated my account settings so it says I can receive a private message from anyone but you might need to do the same too?) Let’s give it a try anyway!