"But your child seems so normal".
"He must be high functioning"
"Are you sure autism is the right diagnosis?"
"They are just labeling too many kids as autistic these days."
All of these comments are almost daily. I hear them so often that I can hear it coming before its said. And I hate it.
I understand that people want to be comforting. I get that they are coming from a good place. However it doesn't come across that way, not to an autism parent. We go through countless battles for our kids, we fight our asses off to help them improve and when it shows we are so proud. And sometimes those comments hurt, because we've fought tooth and nail for this and its dumbed down to..."but your kid seems so normal."
The next reason this really bothers me is because we have good days and bad days. We plan accordingly and do our best to help keep our kids out of stressful situations. And more often than not, it means avoiding social activities. So yes, you saw my kid on a good day and that's great. But on a bad day, most people understand when you cancel plans because they didn't want to be around the "autistic child" anyway. I wish I could say it isn't true but all too often this is the way it goes.
While this probably came off as brash, I'm okay with that. Sami and I are incredibly blessed that we've had so much support from friends and family who love and support us daily. I am so incredibly glad that we are now in a place that is more accepting and loving towards Sami.
It is my sincere hope that one day Autism awareness will be widespread and we'll find a way to meet those affected with compassion and understanding instead of confusion or ignorance.
peace and love,
