Thursday, December 30, 2010

Autism Recovery

During my stroke recovery in 2007, I noticed that my short term memory suffered, my ability to think clearly and process info was a struggle, and I couldn't walk a mile without sitting down pale and winded (I had been a marathon runner prior). BUT I had these interesting new abilities and thought processes that I didn't have before, and that surprised me. As I recovered, I lost those new, cool abilities, and gained my old self back. The process gave me insight into how much the brain is capable of, how quickly it can be taken away (ie: stroke), and that when some areas are neg. impacted, sometimes the brain can do some extraordinary things in other/new areas.

Often we see children with autism demonstrate amazing things. Zavier could read at age 3. Some children with autism can play the piano beautifully after hearing the music once. Someone asked me: "If you were offered a way to cure your child's autism, but the cure would rob them of the thing that makes them special, would you do it?" I think it's a bias question (clearly the person asking would answer "no"), but I'll post my answer here:

I want my son to be his best self. I have noticed that physical issues such as his mito issues, sky-high bacteria levels, GI issues, etc, are impacting the way that he thinks. I have noticed that as we help him overcome these health issues, his autism symptoms improve. It makes me wonder - at least in my own son's case - what autism really is. I think a better question to ask me would be this: "Do you want to heal your child of his physical health issues, at the risk that some of his special qualities might diminish?" The answer is yes. I want Zavier to heal, and to overcome his obstacles.

Today I asked him: "Zavier, is it hard for you to think sometimes?"

He answered: "Yes."

I then asked: "Is it hard for you to think and talk?"

He answered: "Yes."

I responded: "Well, Mommy is working hard so that you can learn to think and talk without it hurting. You are working so hard too. I love you, Zavier."

He was quiet, then answered: "I wuv you, Mommy."