Diagnosis: Autistic Disorder

After months of knowing the inevitable, we have our official diagnosis. 5 hours of meeting with OTs, speech therapists, developmental pediatricians and we've been given the low average probability that Derek is autistic.

Now armed with an official diagnosis we move forward, or at least so I thought. They say there is no cure for autism, but just spend a few hours in a book store, or on the web and you'll find hundreds. Of course no one agrees with one another, from going the route of ABA to giving your child medication they use for lead poisoning (to remove mercury) you can find it all out there.

I think we are falling somewhere in the middle of all of this. I agree wholeheartedly that Derek needs therapy, as recommend20-25 hours per week with a 1:1 ratio. At the same time I won't rule out having him tested for heavy metal poisoning. This is where the fun comes into play with all the possible treatments. This is one place no one can seem to agree. And for a parent spending so much time researching and researching and trying to determine what road to take for their child is just beyond overwhelming. I cannot even begin to tell you my frustration level right now. You want to heal your child, you want to do it right, you don't want to hurt them or put them through anything unnecessary. So which way to turn? Who has the right protocol? What has the best success rate?

Our journey is taking us to Seattle WA, to meet with an ARNP (a nurse with a PhD) to discuss her method of chelation. For a 3 hour drive and $135 an hour it seems almost insane. We have to begin somewhere.

My apologies for the lack of updates, I never had much to update on, as we have been in a "sit and wait" mode for months now. Now that our diagnosis is done I feel I'll have more to talk about as I continue my search.