Autism awareness for us is daily, not a specific date on the calendar. We live this every day of our lives and try to educate people every day about what autism is and how we live our life with it. We write this blog to help spread awareness, and even though we might not write something every week, we hope that it reaches the masses. Because people need to know the struggles, the beauty, and uniqueness of every individual with autism.
Autism awareness to us means showing people that it's ok to be different. That it's completely fine to not fear what you don't know. Ask questions, most autism families we know don't mind talking about autism and helping people understand what autism looks like in their life. And trust me, there's no two autism families the same.
Autism awareness to us means knowing there's so much work to be done to educate others on how autism affects individuals and families. Autism looks different for every person, for every family. Autism in our house is structure and routines, it's therapies several days per week, it's rigidity and an inability to be flexible, it's the desire to line things up and categorize them, it's big, huge emotions and learning how to navigate them even though you don't understand them. Autism for us is teaching and learning what feelings look like on other people and then how to react appropriately. Most people know it's not cool to laugh at someone when they are crying or sad. But for us, that's something we deal with and teach every day.
Autism for us means hardly ever being on time. It means being on track to leave the house in record time just to be side railed because a sock doesn't feel right, or because today he's boycotting shoes, or because he feels the need to gather 37 keys to take with him and he can only find 32. For us it means being at the store and sitting down in the middle of the isle because......well, sometimes we don't know why. But it's being patient and meeting him where he's at. It's employing every single tool, trick, and strategy you know in order to get him off the floor and keep moving.
Autism for us includes a furry 85 lb. German Shepherd service dog wherever we go. Which means educating people not only on autism, but on service dog rules and etiquette wherever we go. It means enduring stares and pointing fingers when we're walking at the mall or Costco. But it also means we have a more regulated little boy because of this wonderful furry girl named Sunny, and the tasks she does for Charlie every day. Is it a lot of work? Yep. But we wouldn't change it for anything.
Autism at our house is daily meltdowns, sometimes self harm behavior, lots of tears, and aggression. It's sensory issues and sensory diets, it's tools and equipment around every area of our house to implement the sensory diet that is so important to help his body and emotions stay regulated. But you know what? Autism for us also means a lot of beauty. We have this incredible boy who has a heart bigger than anyone we know. It includes tons of laughter because Charlie is such a jokester with a great sense of humor. It means endless hugs and snuggles. Our autism means endless energy and a drive for adventure every day. And it's finding the good in everyone he meets.
Autism awareness month will mean different things do different people. Some despise this month, others make the most of this month to shine the spotlight on those they hold dear to their hearts. We are beyond blessed by our little boy. We wouldn't be the parents we are today if we didn't have our Charlie. He's made us better people and taught us way more in the last 7 years than we ever could have imagined.
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