Max had his first evaluation to diagnose Autism, and he is not autistic. There is a sigh of relief with the lack of diagnosis. He was diagnosed with a pretty hefty speech delay and while the Psychologist did not diagnose him as having OCD or ADHD he said he shows signs.

Something he said has made me take a step back and watch Max a little harder. He made the comment that he is not understanding everything we are saying. He has this major pause when asked a question. He said he slow on his receptive understanding. We had always thought he was just thinking things through. There are times that he is, you can tell (now that its been brought to my attention) he scans what you’re talking about or what you’ve asked him about or makes a “hmmmmm” thinking noise. But other times, nothing. He blankly stares or he repeats a question back over and over and over.

We also saw that asking him a question multiple times seems to get an answer, but when asked any question a single time would present nothing but a blank stare.

It’s interesting when a professional gives you feedback on your kiddo. It’s interesting when they have a totally different twist on what they are doing. Sometimes clinical perception is harsh. Really harsh when it comes to our children. Maybe because our children are our hearts and it feels like a personal smack, when it’s really not. I’m learning how to separate my emotional ties to my child rearing from the help these professionals provide. It’s a struggle but it’s necessary.

So we are off on another new adventure. We are going to learn how to help him communicate better, how to move his mouth and tongue with purpose. How to focus appropriately and learn how to help raise his cognitive abilities.
One thing he doesn’t need any help learning is how to be cute.
He mastered that day one 🙂