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“But he looks fine…”

 "[So-called] Mild autism doesn't mean one experiences autism mildly... It means YOU experience their autism mildly. You may not know how hard they've had to work to get to the level they are." -Adan Walton

I got the comment the other day basically saying that since Drew was behaving so well, his autism must be less severe. I just smiled politely and said that it has taken a lot of hard work to get where we are, but I'm not sure if they really knew what I meant.  

Autism is now diagnosed in 3 levels. I have attached an image below describing the different levels. Drew was diagnosed with level 3, meaning he would require the more support. This has been through years of early intervention, (speech, PT, OT, and special instruction), BSC/TSS, outpatient services, early preschool, routines, trial and error, patients, and lots of tears have brought us to where we are. There are still days that I don't want to take Drew certain places because I'm unsure how he was react. Luckily he is still small enough that if worse comes to worse I can pick him up and carry him to the car to escape the situation, but that won't always be the case. I guess the age old saying "Don't judge a book by it's cover" still rings true today. Don't take one interaction you have had with someone and reduce it down to their life must be so easy up to this point.  As always, thanks for reading. 





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