I'd tell you what they can do but, honestly, I don't want to type it out here on this little blog o'mine because of the misguided hits I'd receive. I mean, this is a family and kid blog, right?
Anyway, when Joey was a baby and just starting on the adventures of surgery I became worried when it seemed that right after surgery he would take two huge steps backward in development. I was never worried about the autism spectrum but I was greatly worried about the development of his brain and his ability to think. I worried that one day, he would wake up out of surgery and be a 6 month old baby for the rest of his life. That was some hard stuff to lug around on my shoulders....in addition to the medical crap that was going on...it's simply amazing that I just didn't go bat crap crazy and need to be signed up for the loony bin.
So here is a quick summary based on my not too good memory...I am certain I've missed at least one or two things.
Times under anesthetic (sleeping) *He needed to be sleeping for the MRI/CtScan because babies don't sit still when asked*
2 months for ctscan
2 1/2 months for MRI
3 1/2 months for 5 hour surgery
9 months for 4 hour surgery
13 months for 5 hour surgery
15 months for 1 hour surgery
2 years for 1 hour surgery
3 years for MRI
4 years for 5 hour surgery
4 1/2 years for 2 hour surgery
5 years for 2 hour surgery
Even in the most recent surgery, I noticed a bit of a step back in his behavior for roughly 2-3 months and then things started getting closer to and then back to normal.
So when he was an infant and I noticed these things I mentioned something to our parent educator and she didn't seem too worried. Well, like the squeaky wheel, I kept complaining and eventually someone was sent out to test Joey and he just barely qualified for First Steps. When he graduated from First Steps, he just barely qualified for preschool and now that he was just reevaluated he was *this close* to qualifying for speech/language and missed it and I just wish they would have went ahead and slipped him in because I worry and well, that's just what I do because he's had enough stuff happen to him and I just don't want him to fall behind.
He will still receive occupational and physical therapy and he'll have many eyes on his academic success but I worry because I've read stuff like THIS. There is more out there but that one is the easiest, quickest read.
And while I do worry, I do relax a bit when little moments like this morning happen. You see, Joey isn't allowed out of his room until 7-8am *potty/sick/scared are all perfectly fine reasons to come out*. If I allowed him to be out of his room, he would get out of bed at 5am every morning and I just can't function or keep up with his energy if I am out of bed that early.
Keeping him in his bedroom has lead to him sleeping in until around 7am. The extra sleep helps his mood tremendously. I'm not too sure what time he woke up this morning but he said, as he climbed into my bed at 8am, "Mommy, guess what I've been doing! I've been reading Junie B Jones Is Not A Crook. I am on chapter 4!"
Once I gained my bearings and was able to have the ability to think cognitively, I asked Joey a few questions about the book and while he wasn't able to answer every question, he was able to answer some of the questions. He's not even six years old yet and he's reading so well. So yeah, the scientific studies are just that. Studies. They don't know anything about my son. My son will thrive and succeed and keep on learning and growing and doing great because he is great.
I'm really proud of him and all of his hard work because, honestly, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I just present him with different waters from all over the universe and the boy just soaks it all up like a thirsty little sponge.
Anyway, when Joey was a baby and just starting on the adventures of surgery I became worried when it seemed that right after surgery he would take two huge steps backward in development. I was never worried about the autism spectrum but I was greatly worried about the development of his brain and his ability to think. I worried that one day, he would wake up out of surgery and be a 6 month old baby for the rest of his life. That was some hard stuff to lug around on my shoulders....in addition to the medical crap that was going on...it's simply amazing that I just didn't go bat crap crazy and need to be signed up for the loony bin.
So here is a quick summary based on my not too good memory...I am certain I've missed at least one or two things.
Times under anesthetic (sleeping) *He needed to be sleeping for the MRI/CtScan because babies don't sit still when asked*
2 months for ctscan
2 1/2 months for MRI
3 1/2 months for 5 hour surgery
9 months for 4 hour surgery
13 months for 5 hour surgery
15 months for 1 hour surgery
2 years for 1 hour surgery
3 years for MRI
4 years for 5 hour surgery
4 1/2 years for 2 hour surgery
5 years for 2 hour surgery
Even in the most recent surgery, I noticed a bit of a step back in his behavior for roughly 2-3 months and then things started getting closer to and then back to normal.
So when he was an infant and I noticed these things I mentioned something to our parent educator and she didn't seem too worried. Well, like the squeaky wheel, I kept complaining and eventually someone was sent out to test Joey and he just barely qualified for First Steps. When he graduated from First Steps, he just barely qualified for preschool and now that he was just reevaluated he was *this close* to qualifying for speech/language and missed it and I just wish they would have went ahead and slipped him in because I worry and well, that's just what I do because he's had enough stuff happen to him and I just don't want him to fall behind.
He will still receive occupational and physical therapy and he'll have many eyes on his academic success but I worry because I've read stuff like THIS. There is more out there but that one is the easiest, quickest read.
And while I do worry, I do relax a bit when little moments like this morning happen. You see, Joey isn't allowed out of his room until 7-8am *potty/sick/scared are all perfectly fine reasons to come out*. If I allowed him to be out of his room, he would get out of bed at 5am every morning and I just can't function or keep up with his energy if I am out of bed that early.
Keeping him in his bedroom has lead to him sleeping in until around 7am. The extra sleep helps his mood tremendously. I'm not too sure what time he woke up this morning but he said, as he climbed into my bed at 8am, "Mommy, guess what I've been doing! I've been reading Junie B Jones Is Not A Crook. I am on chapter 4!"
Once I gained my bearings and was able to have the ability to think cognitively, I asked Joey a few questions about the book and while he wasn't able to answer every question, he was able to answer some of the questions. He's not even six years old yet and he's reading so well. So yeah, the scientific studies are just that. Studies. They don't know anything about my son. My son will thrive and succeed and keep on learning and growing and doing great because he is great.
I'm really proud of him and all of his hard work because, honestly, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I just present him with different waters from all over the universe and the boy just soaks it all up like a thirsty little sponge.
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| I love this boy (and the girl too!)! |
He's been defying odds for long time, hasn't he? That's wonderful--that he can read already :)
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