New year, new me...ntal breakdowns

2022! What a year so far!?

We spent Christmas in Adelaide with my family then we were off to Woolongong to visit Grandma Beryl.

Travelling with children is exhausting, so two trips back to back probably wasn’t the smartest idea!

Oscar is such a sensitive little guy, easily overwhelmed and overstimulated (much like his mama!). Travelling comes with a lot of changes, and it was easy to see that this was quite distressing for him. He gets very upset and clingy, and communication (which he is normally good at) becomes difficult.

The older that Oscar gets, the more signs I am seeing that point towards ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).

Speaking with some friends who also have children on the spectrum has been helpful and validating, and we have started taking the steps to get him properly assessed.

If I’m completely honest, it all feels a bit too much for me to process at the moment. I think that when you become a parent, you just want to shield your child from anything that might make life more difficult/challenging for them.

I am not worried about my son possibly having autism, but I am worried about how that might impact him socially in the future...Will he feel included? Will he be made fun of? Will he remain a bright and happy boy or will his head start to sink down in shame?

Some people have already made comments that don’t sit well with me when the topic of autism is brought up. There is still so much stigma and stereotyping that surrounds neurodiversity.

There is nothing “wrong” with people who have ASD. What’s wrong is the way society views and judges those who are different from the “norm”.

We ended up having to cut our Woolongong trip short because Jordan’s grandma tested positive. We packed up our car and made the 10 hr drive back home- with all of us feeling a bit under the weather.

10 days of isolation later...

Still not feeling 100% but the worst of it seems to be over. I had planned to get stuck into my course after our trip, but I’ve been too ill to do much at all...just a few hours here and there when I’ve felt up to it.

It’s been a rough start to the year, but that’s life isn’t it?...the challenges just keep on coming! 🤪

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