Life on the Spectrum: My Little Shadow

Monday, September 14, 2009

My Little Shadow

I have a shadow that follows me EVERYWHERE.

I have a regular shadow like everyone else, but the shadow I'm talking about in this post is a living, breathing, 3 feet tall, blond-haired, blue-eyed variety:

This shadow seldom leaves my side.

Little Guy definitely prefers me over anyone else and constantly relies on me to read his cues and help him stay regulated. The smallest changes in routine can create a huge meltdown, and running errands oftentimes can be a huge challenge. I guess I should feel flattered that Little Guy loves me so much, but being with a high maintenance toddler 24/7 can get EXHAUSTING.

However, something happened the other day that made me realize what I do for Little Guy does make a difference - even if I don't see the results right away. I was busy putting some dishes away and Little Guy was "helping" me when I suddenly realized he was repeating something over and over to himself.

As I listened closer, my heart started to melt at what I was hearing. My little shadow was saying, "Little Guy and Mom are BEST friends. We friends, we best friends."

What a priceless return for my efforts!

1 comment:

The Andra Family said...: I can relate to you, as I too have a "shadow".
How heart warming however, as to what you over heard Little Guy say.; September 15, 2009 at 11:35 AM

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Our family consists of myself, my husband of 22 years, and 4 wonderful children. "Big Guy" is our oldest and was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome four years ago. He attends college, majoring in English. "Little Guy" just started kindergarten and is also diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. We also have 2 "neurotypical" children. "Sis" is our only daughter and just began her second year of college. Her sweet willingness to help certainly is a big boost to her mother's sanity! "Middle Guy" rounds out the group; he just started high school and is quite busy with various activities. We try living each day to the fullest, never knowing what tomorrow (or even the next moment) might bring!

An online source states "Asperger's syndrome (also called Asperger's syndrome, Asperger's disorder, Asperger's or AS) is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and people with AS therefore show significant difficulties in social interaction and restricted, stereotyped patterns of behavior and interests. AS differs from other ASDs by its relative preservation of linguistic and cognitive development."

On a more personal level, this is what a person with autism had to offer about their own experience with this lifelong developmental disability:
Reality to an autistic person is a confusing mass of events, people, places, sounds and sights. There seem to be no clear boundaries, order or meaning to anything. A large part of my life is spent just trying to work out the pattern behind everything.

A source much closer to home brings this perspective......"It's like everyone one else is playing a game that you'd really like to join, only you don't know the rules. When you ask someone to explain the rules, it's as if they are speaking in Japanese; you have no idea what they're talking about. You are left stuck behind a fence, watching as the game of life goes on without you."