Declan’s Story
My son, Declan, was diagnosed with autism on June 22, 2006. He was 26 months at the time. While not surprised, I was shocked that this was now a reality. Declan had always been a very sensitive baby from the time he was born. At six hours old, my husband and I knew something was different about him. The nurses at St. Joseph's hospital kept kicking him out of the nursery for screaming so loudly he was upsetting the other newborns. We started calling him the boomerang baby.
Physically, Declan hit all of his milestones either early or on time. He started walking at eleven and a half months and seemed the picture of health to us. Of course at that time we did not know the signs of autism. I doubt we would have associated the disorder with our baby. I vividly remember Declan spending long minutes staring into my eyes whenever I was changing his diaper. He looked so knowing even at six months of age.
At Declan's 18 month checkup, our pediatrician suggested that we call Denver Options to have Declan assessed for developmental delays. At that time Declan had started Montessori, so I asked his teachers if they thought Declan was different from his peers developmentally. They exchanged a glance and said they had been trying to decide how to approach this delicate topic with me. I still was not alarmed at this point. The following week (after making an appointment with Denver Options) I was doing an observation of Declan in his classroom. I happened to come in when they were having music/dance time. Much to my amazement, Declan was off in a corner away from the other children, dancing his heart out. I was alarmed now! Why would he want to intentionally distance himself from his friends during an activity that he clearly loved?
Over the next several months, Declan was tested and diagnosed with Sensory Integration Disorder and began speech and occupational therapy through Denver Options. He was having a blast with his therapists and being very compliant. He was also working very hard and not really making much progress with his speech and still seemed to have a lot of sensory issues. No one ever mentioned autism, but I had a nagging feeling something else was going on.
Shortly after Declan turned two, we had him officially assessed for autism. The neuropsychologist that tested him felt that if he was autistic, he was atypical. Meaning that because he was so engaged socially and loved physical contact, he did not meet a lot of the criteria associated with autism.
After a very nerve wracking two weeks, we finally had a meeting with her. I do not envy that job. She went through the testing with me and went over the points that led her to believe that in fact, Declan did have autism. She felt that his repetitive behaviors and stimming placed him on the spectrum.
We immediately began looking into schools for autism. The process was quite confusing as we did not know where to go for information. Finally, after talking to the folks at The Autistic Society of Colorado, I had a list of schools in Colorado. After touring and meeting with the staff at each school, it became clear to us that Declan would be the happiest at the Alta Vista Center for Autism. The teachers and staff at AVC were amazing. A perfect balance of expertise and real joy in working with special needs children.
Declan has been at the Alta Vista Center for Autism for a year now and we can hardly believe the progress he has made. He is now able to express his feelings through language and appropriate behavior most of the time. Declan (and us) have become quite attached to the teachers and staff. We are always made to feel at home and there is no question/concern that is not deemed important by the people at the Alta Vista Center.
This last year since Declan's diagnosis has been very interesting and challenging indeed. I feel closer to my son because I am learning how to understand him since he has a hard time just coming out and telling me how feels (but getting better everyday). I am so proud of who he is as a person and cherish his uniqueness.
