Despite knowing in our heart that something was going on with Bug since he was 2, it took us until after he turned 8 to finally get a diagnosis, and we actually are still trying to get in to see a actual Autism Center. There are very few resources up here. So I am still very new at most of this. Luckily he is so high functioning that with patience and help from his teachers it is getting better. The hardest part has been that each school year it's a 50/50 draw to see if his teacher will help us and work with him, or not. Last year did not go so well. So far though this year seems to be going great. One thing that definitely is helping this year was that I finally did some more research into ways to help the sensory issues with children on the spectrum. I know I myself suffer from sensory issues and I know how hard it must have been for Bug the last 9 years.Last week was Open House at the school. Bug is in 4th Grade now and Riv is in UPK. We got there early and it was really nice. Not too many people, I got time with both kids teachers, and I got to talk to Bug's teacher about everything. Then Riv pulled us into the Gym to show us the obstacle course. Suddenly we were in a sea of people. Screaming children and loud parents everywhere. The noise was deafening even for me. Bug started to turn white, he was covering his ears, started almost crying, and was rocking back and forth. He grabbed my arm and started begging for me to take us out. Riv was looking up at me with her big green eyes saying "Mommy please come see my obstacle course". I had about 4 seconds to make a decision before I had a meltdown on my hands. So I excused myself from my friend I was talking to, scooped up Riv, apologizing to her, and led Bug out of the noise.
That night I went online and did some research and found that it is common for kids with Autism to wear noise muffling or noise cancelling earmuffs or headphones. So I asked Bug what he thought about it and his exact words were, "Mom that could change my life!" I started crying realizing something so simple could actually have such a huge impact. So I ordered a pair.
Well they came today and he wore them to school. He said he wore them during gym and recess. He loved it. It made his day so much easier. When he came to my work after school he wore them to drown out the sounds of my class while he sat at my desk and did his homework. He seemed so much more calm. Anytime loud noises are getting too much for him, he now has an outlet, a way to escape. Every time I can do even a small thing like this to make his world a little better, it just makes me so happy. Who knew a pair of earphones could do all this!
