A rose by any other name

I wish I had started this blog sooner. I am the type of person who does well thinking chronologically.  Trying to go back in time to recreate the past couple of months, let alone the past year or more, is daunting.

Please bear with me as I write more about the present before I am able to delve into the past.  I know the background knowledge will be helpful. I know for parents who are scouring the internet for any bit of information to help them try and figure out whether their child may be autistic or not, the early information will be helpful.

Since the diagnosis, I have struggled with my son being labeled. I struggle with knowing that some people will see him as only his diagnosis. Define him by autism. Limit him. Will he be teased? Excluded? Discriminated against?  Stigmatized?

I don't want that for him.

I have struggled with my own preconceived notions of autism. How can my child have autism? Look at everything he CAN do. Look at his eye contact. Look, he IS social. He responds to his name. He follows directions. He knows his family members. He doesn't line things up. He doesn't flap his arms or spin around. He doesn't bang his head on the wall.

Yes, he walks on his tippy-toes occasionally, but doesn't every toddler? And yes, he has an affinity for cars, but so do a lot of other boys.

Our son's symptoms are mild. He was diagnosed at 2 years and 10 months of age. His symptoms could get worse. His symptoms could get better. Would he then still carry the label for life? 

In the end, a label is just a label. It doesn't change who my son is. It doesn't change his sense of humor, his bright smiles, his endless energy.  It doesn't change the warmth of his hugs, the softness of his cheeks, the twinkle in his eyes.  It doesn't change how smart he is, how clever he is, how stinkin' cute he is.

Autism does not define him.

Shakespeare wrote, "What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

My little guy is still my little guy. The same little guy he was before April 26, 2011.