Since I expected the diagnosis I thought I would have handled it better, but Honestly I broke down & can still recall that day back in 2014. Depending on severity, ASD will mostly dictate a child’s quality of life. Various therapies help, but if not consistent then the child will suffer the consequences as my son is proof of. It can break your heart & leave you trying Everyday to keep your family intact. This is my reality. My son is a loving child & will always receive the best care I can give him, that’s the bottom line for me.

When my son got diagnosed in 2004 I didn't know anything about Autism. When I begin to read up on Autism that's when it hit me like a ton of bricks!!!

The news broke slowly as they said first old us our daughter had MRELD (Mixed receptive-expressive language disorder). A couple of women from Babies Can't Wait (Georgia) said our daughter appeared to be autistic based on toe-walking for example. They told us we have to pay $150/hr for therapy which we thought sounded like a scam. Never told us there were other ways to apply for funds. I couldn't believe they could diagnose a kid at age 2 or 3.

I think she was 4 when she was tested more thoroughly for ASD. My first thought went from "I wonder what she will do when she grows up?" to "Is there anything she can do when she grows up?". The reality is there's no magic bullet out there but plenty of people on the internet will try to convince you otherwise. ASD will take over more of your life depending on the severity. Get all the help you can as early as possible. When it comes to kids, most of us will die earlier than our kids not really knowing how things turned out for them. The best we can do is make them the best person they can be. Expect to run into a lot of people have ASD family members or know someone with it. Never met a person with ASD before our daughter and never the word "autism" until I was 24 so it was unknown when I was in school. A lot changed in the last 25 years.