我的自闭儿子的故事.pdfVIP

MyPersonalStorywithmysonontheAutismSpectrum This week I want to share a little of my personal story aboutmy sonontheAutismSpectrum… Our son Brandon is currently aged 16.5 years and is an exceptional young man, who has focus, self management skills, personal goals and an inner strength and comfort inwhoheis. Flashback12.5yearsandthingswereverydifferent. Brandon was a late diagnosis – aged 8 years – up until this happened we were smothered in the same old clichés that society throws flippantly at anyone when they are differenttotheperceived‘norm’. Brandon did not talk, he ran away often and self harmed, had awkward behaviours that others did not understand and his motor skills were not of the level his peers had. He struggled strongly in social settings and due to not having the average communication skills, his needs were notmet asoftenasthey shouldhavebeenandthiscaused greater distress to his daily experiences, so much so, he attemptedsuicidethreetimes. As parents we were incorrectly judged as being ‘bad parents’, ‘useless parents’, ‘less worthy of acceptance’ in our community and much, much more. This was not so bad, what was bad was what our son endured within our community; • Exclusion • Isolation • Loathing • Missingoutoneducationalneeds • Hatred • Bullying Andmuchmore…………………….. Watching your child go downhill rapidly and not have the skills to express himself, tears a parent up inside and so I set out to find a ‘professional’ who would listen to me and I traveled many, many hours, away from our hometowntofinallybeheard. Brandon was diagnosed as Low FunctioningAutism with Torettes syndrome and this diagnosis was obtained from the Children Hospital with a various array of ‘Professionals’ – Psychiatrist, Neurological Professor, Psychologist, Paediatrician. A lot of extensive tests were taken and we finally had an answer that did not insultourskillsasparents. I set out to learn every