I would be lying if I said, before becoming a mother, I never feared having a child with Autism or any other developmental delay. I knew no matter what I would love my child, but I did not know how I could handle raising a child with special needs.
As my child was born, I made sure she had every vaccine on the recommended schedule.
My daughter was developing, what seemed normally, but she was also my first child. I didn’t know what else to expect. My daughter since she was very little had funny quirks. Even while she was very little you could tell she had a high pain tolerance. She’d hit her head or fall and just kind of rub it and move on. She rarely cried over it.
Between 1 and 2 years old my daughter would not start speaking like she should. We started speech therapy. At first, as the idea of Autism arose, I denied it several times. I did not think my child could be Autistic. Why? Because I was only aware of the stereotypical signs and symptoms. I did not know how huge the spectrum was. I did not know how every child with Autism is different. I did not know that Autism is significantly different in girls then it is boys.
The main point here is I was naïve.
I did not know enough about Autism. Before having my own daughter with Autism, I did not understand it, I did not understand cause, I did not understand signs, symptoms, or how it effects kids. Only thing I did know is vaccines do not cause Autism.
Before becoming a mother anytime I heard the argument that vaccines cause Autism, I thought “even if vaccines do cause Autism, I’d rather have an Autistic child then a dead one.” Now that I have a child with Autism I have to say….. I STILL BELIEVE THIS.
I do not want to minimize the struggle Autism can be.
The struggle as a mother of a child with Autism, the struggle to deal with sensory processing problems, behaviors, and stimming. The constant guilt when I feel like I’m not doing enough for her. The feeling of sadness when all I want is to hear my daughter tell me “I love you mommy.”
It’s not easy, I admit it, but you know what?
She’s alive.
She’s taking speech therapy, occupational therapy, and in developmental preschool. She’s learning every day to manage her sensory needs, to communicate, to express her feelings, and to socialize with others. She’s only 3.5 years old and she’s already thriving significantly in just the last year. She’s alive and that’s all I care about.
As a mother I fear the myth as it is spread.
The myth that vaccines cause Autism is so detrimental to children, but not only that, the lack of awareness and understanding about Autism is detrimental to children. Fearing Autism to such an extent that you would not vaccine your children is putting them at risk. Autism is not a death sentence.
Sarah
Similar Posts:
Helpful Tips for Preparing An Autistic Child for Kindergarten
How to Deal with Anti-Vaxxers and Their Ignorant Comments
Protecting My Children and the Greater Good: Why I Vaccinate My Children
YASSSSS Autism is NOT a death sentence! With the stigma surrounding autism and vaccines, I’m afraid of the number of children that are unvaxxed, AND on the spectrum, because people will not seek help or believe doctors. Thank you for mentioning my posts!
Thank you, I love this! I agree that there needs to be so much more awareness for all the signs of Autism. Like almost anything, the sooner you know what it is, the sooner you can help!
This is such a great post. There is too much misinformation out there on this. I applaud you for being your daughter’s biggest advocate!
Thank you for this perspective. I have a child with some health issues and I would still get her vaccinated if it could possibly cause her issues. (I don’t think vaccines do)
Exactly. I just think it’s a lack of awareness. It’s important to know and understand this and I appreciate you sharing! I used to work for a genetic testing lab a few years back and so I learned quite a bit about the genetic side of the Spectrum.
Thank you for writing this poignant post!!! I was never afraid of having a child with a learning difference, because several LDs run in my family and I grew up with a younger brother who was severely dyslexic. It’s just something you deal with, it makes you who you are, and you live your life. However, I *was* blindsided when I was fully prepared for that LD, and ended up with a daughter who has a different LD than dyslexia – I had no idea what I was looking for, for so long, and after I started to suspect what was going on, so many people told me for the longest time, “oh, that’s NOT what’s going on” – as much because of their own misconceptions as anything else! So yes, always being alert and wide-eyed to the possibility of a child with a LD is good advice. There is absolutely nothing “wrong” with a person whose brain is wired differently than that of a “neurotypical” kid, and the sooner parents AND child AND society alike stop thinking of it as something “wrong” vs just something “different,” the better off that child will be.
Definitely good points. There are so many theories out there, it is interesting how there are so many.
Thank you, I love this! I agree with the above comments. A lot of people are miseducated and misinformed on the topic of Autism. I work in healthcare and I have seen many kids who have not been vaccinated who autism and who have and don’t have autism.
Love This! People with Autism can live very happy, full lives, especially when diagnosed early!
We do need to start talking more openly about autism. People make assumptions because they don’t know enough and this leads to the wrong information being shared!
I have heard dad’s people do not want to vaccinate their kids because they are afraid they will get autism and I believe that that is not true I wish that people would do more research
I, myself, am concerned for my daughter. She’s 4 and is having a really hard time in Pre-Kindergarten. Her teacher is concerned and I needed this. Not necessarily the part about vaccinating because I’m a firm believer in vaccination but the other part about it not being the worst thing in the world – if my daughter is on the spectrum.
I’m definitely learning more about autism. It’s not something I’ve personally experienced, but I would like to be knowledgeable about the topic. Getting a vaccines is definitely not the cause of autism. Thanks, for sharing!
Thanks for addressing this. There’s a lot of misinformation out there, and I’m glad someone who is living through the experience can talk about it.
I’m so happy you wrote about this! Such a touchy topic and I love your point of view!