Facts about Autism

There is a wide range of autism spectrum in this generation. Recently Asperger is considered autism now. Symptoms mainly appear in the first 2 years of life. Autism is different in everyone who has it.
We have recently found out that Nash is in the moderate level of autism. He can grow out of it or have it go to a low functioning.

Here is nash looking at a flag blowing in the wind. His face is priceless.
Also you can see him flapping his hands. 

I admit it has been very hard to deal with this, but I am learning along the way. It explains a lot in Nash. He has a very hard time dealing with certain situations and places. He flaps his arms when he is excited or interested in something. Like a flag blowing in the wind or fishes swimming around. He is fascinated with things, he want to know how they move and how the wind is making that flag move. He has speech delay and most of his milestones he was late on. He just got potty trained when he turned 4. He has been peeing in the potty since he was 2, but he just got fully potty trained to where he goes without assistance.
He had a hard time getting here and came out blue and lack of oxygen. When he was about 5 months old he needed a helmet which made his milestones more behind.
He has only some of the symptoms listed below, I have marked them as such.

Here are some signs of autism:
(before you read, these are just signs I have learned and read about. Screen your child to test for it.)

• Disconnected to others - this can include parents and siblings. 
  
• Lack of empathy 
• Indifferent to human interaction - not responding to name, not making eye contact (one of nashs signs is not making eye contact)
• Emotional outbursts - throwing tantrums in normal situations, harming self. ( nash hits himself or others when he gets angry or doesn't get his way)
• Delayed language development - use the following guidelines: by the age of 1, children should be able to say a few simple, single words. By 18 months, children should have at least six words in their vocabularies. By age 2, children ought to be able to string simple two-word phrases together, by the age of 3, children should have the capacity to form complete, albeit basic sentences. Children who fail to hit these milestones may have autism, particularly if delayed language development is accompanied by other symptoms. (Nash has this, but since he was 3 and going to school his language has skyrocketed. Hes 4 and now saying 2-3 word sentences sometimes 4. Im so proud of him)
• Prone to non verbal communication
• Difficulty understanding figurative expression - Nash has a hard time with this one. I will say something firm and tell him "no" or tap his bum when hes naughty. He'll laugh and think im being funny when I'm actually disciplining him. 
• Repetitive behaviors - they may arrange and rearrange the same group of objects, rock back and forth for extended periods of time, flutter their hands, or repeat the same word or phrase in what appears an obsessive manner. (Nash has this one, fluttering of arms and repeat the same words)
• Pica - eating objects that are not food. ( nash has the tendency to do this. He'll eat dirt, diapers,  rocks, and even poop. He has not done this since last year)
• Sensitivity to external stimuli - autistic individuals may become stressed or agitated when exposed to specific noises, bright lights, or particular smells, tastes, or textures. They may also become hypersensitive to certain stimuli; in other words, they will insist on wearing certain items of clothing or colors, prefer rooms with bright lights or loud sounds, and enjoy touching or playing with specific body parts. ( nash has a hard time with big crowds and loud noises. He also likes to scream randomly)
• Obsessive behaviors - their need for a rigid routine might include taking the same route to school every day, an inability to adapt to changes in schedule or environment, an unusual attachment to toys or strange objects, or becoming obsessed with a narrow topic of interest, usually something that involves numbers or symbols. They will enjoy repeating the same actions over and over again, spending long periods of time staring at moving objects like a ceiling fan, or instead of playing with a toy, they’ll only focus on one aspect of it, like spinning the wheels on a toy car.( nash has this one. Hes obsessed with ceiling fans, flags, trees, anything that will move with wind. When he was 2 he lined his cars on the table, now he just scatters them. Apparently thats a sign of autism)
• Lack of communication - they will not show any interest in sparking conversation or be able to participate in even a simple conversation. They will not respond to facial expressions, use facial expressions, notice when their name is being called or even point at things when they need something. When they do start speaking, their language is often underdeveloped. For example, they might confuse their pronouns and use “you” when they should be saying “I” and vice versa, or repeat sentences they hear without understanding the meaning behind them.  this is called “parroting” or “echoing.” ( nash does parroting where he repeats everything we say)
• Seemingly unresponsive 
• Dont like being touched or cuddled 
• Is unusually sensitive to light, sound or touch, yet may be indifferent to pain or temperature. - nash is very pain tolerant. He burned to tips of his fingers off and didn't even cry. He has problems with certain sounds, but hes fine with lights and touch.
• Doesn't engage in imitative or make-believe play- Nash is just starting to make- believe play.
• Has specific food preferences, such as eating only a few foods, or refusing foods with a certain texture - Nash has certain food preferences the older he got. Some days he wont eat hardly anything. Other days he'll eat everything in sight. He mainly prefers cucumbers, green peppers, carrots and now apples. Somedays that all he'll eat. He hates water so I have to hide that with a little juice. 
  

As they mature, some children with autism spectrum disorder become more engaged with others and show fewer disturbances in behavior. Some, usually those with the least severe problems, eventually may lead normal or near-normal lives. Others, however, continue to have difficulty with language or social skills, and the teen years can bring worse behavioral and emotional problems.

 I've noticed the older Nash is getting the less his disorder is getting. The flapping of the arms may take a while, but I'm letting him be him.

 He is super smart and can learn things within seconds of teaching. His memory is amazing! He'll remember things I told him once longer than 2 months ago. 

I am prone to seizures so there were a lot of times where I thought he was having one. Turns out it was this. I felt so silly, thankfully my disability won't be passed onto my kids. 

Risk factors

The number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder is rising. It's not clear whether this is due to better detection and reporting or a real increase in the number of cases, or both.

Autism spectrum disorder affects children of all races and nationalities, but certain factors increase a child's risk. These may include:

• Your child's sex. Boys are about four times more likely to develop autism spectrum disorder than girls are.
• Family history. Families who have one child with autism spectrum disorder have an increased risk of having another child with the disorder. It's also not uncommon for parents or relatives of a child with autism spectrum disorder to have minor problems with social or communication skills themselves or to engage in certain behaviors typical of the disorder.
• Other disorders. Children with certain medical conditions have a higher than normal risk of autism spectrum disorder or autism-like symptoms. Examples include fragile X syndrome, an inherited disorder that causes intellectual problems; tuberous sclerosis, a condition in which benign tumors develop in the brain; and Rett syndrome, a genetic condition occurring almost exclusively in girls, which causes slowing of head growth, intellectual disability and loss of purposeful hand use.
• Extremely preterm babies. Babies born before 26 weeks of gestation may have a greater risk of autism spectrum disorder.
• Parents' ages. There may be a connection between children born to older parents and autism spectrum disorder.

Im not trying to act like I'm a professional in this subject, I'm simply reaching out to others in search of help or needing info. This is just my experiences and what I've researched in the autism spectrum. I have learned a lot from reading articles. I'm so grateful that the schools are providing Nash with what he needs to learn and grow. He is my special boy and I try and help him everyday. To teach and to learn from him. I have met some people on social media for support, I recommend it. It is hard to deal with and admit to yourself that your child needs special care. It took me a while to realize what Nash needed it. Now I know what to do when he does certain things or if he's in a situation where he screams. I know what to do to calm him or make him comfortable. 

I wouldn't trade Nash for anything in the world. I absolutely love him for who he is. He was sent to me for a reason. All these things is what makes Nash, Nash. Yes, there are things he needs to work on but he's getting there and learning. 

Thank you all for reading and thank you for your support. 

I might be fixing or adding to this post so keep watching. 

Info from:

mayoclinic.org

activebeat.co