AUTISM AND OUR LIFE- BACKGROUND

Braedon was born in August 2004, the pregnancy went good till it came to my due date and passed by two weeks. Dr decied it was time to induce but Braedon wasn't coming. In the end I had to be induced 9 times in 6 days it was complete hell.

I knew from day 1 something wasnt right, Braedon was extremely colicy, wouldn't sleep and when he did he had to be in his swing. When Braedon was able to start eatting foods and other solids a day wouldn't pass where he would break out in a rash that took over his body. He had severe ear infections one month it was 3 in a month. Dr decided to do some testing on allergies and it was found out that he was severly alergic to peanuts. That same year we decided to put in tubes in his ear as well. Durring all of this we assumed Braedons behaviours and huge meltdowns were result of having so many health issues (rashes, asthma, ears) but when we resolved all the issues at hand his behaviours only got worse.

We decided that same year to get Braedon assessed for speech and OT as we felt he was quite delayed for his age at the time he was approx 1 year behind a child the same age. Braedon went in and recived OT services and speech once a week that slowly helped but again his behaviours were getting worse and worse.

Braedon would have meltdowns lasting anywhere from 4 hours and the longest lasting 15 hours( I will come back to that because Im sure are all saying how does that happen). We would go over to families homes and Braedon would scream the whole time we were there. I would get comments like"oh my terrible twos" or "WOW is he like Normal?" As much as I know my family wasn't trying to be mean or hurtful as a mother it devastated me. I couldn't go no where . I also at that time had a nine year old daughter and was pregnant with my third due anytime. Braedon not only physically assaulted me he also beat his sister, pulled her hair bit her, punched her, slapped her. My husband who was away alot due to work never really got to see the turmoil that was happening all he could do was hear me cry and beg for someone to get him help. Braedon was diagnosed at age two with Austism Spectrum Disorder. Drs were slowly working with him but in the time it took to get things rolling Braedon got worse and worse. July 1st (Canada Day) I decided to take my kids to the lake for a fun day down at the beach things were good not many behaviours he had alot of fun. That night I allowed Braedon to sleep with me as he had crashed in my bed watching a movie. At 1230 pm I was woken up to someone punching me so hard I saw stars and heard screaming all I could see because it was so dark was Braedon Flying at me. When I looked at him I could tell he wasnt totally even aware or awake. He beat me like I was being beaten by a 250lb man. After about 30 minutes of this he went limp and his eyes went to the back of his head I am sure he had a small seizure but once was done he quickly started the whole process of him assaulting me. I begged him to stop I couldnt even hold him down he was that strong, finally after another 20-30 minutes he crashed for the night. I picked up the phone it was 130am and I called my husband screaming and crying and told him I was beaten and all he assumed was someone broke in. When I told him that Braedon our almost 3 year old was the cause he couldn't believe it and assumed I was overreacting(remember he didnt see alot as he worked alot out of town).
Derek my huband works 15 on 6 off and those 15 days hes generally away working in the oil field. Mid July Derek was home on days off and thought he would take the kids to the store for a treat and then to the library. Braedon was allowed to pick his treat and so was Kira my daughter, he came home and was happy with his pick till he got to see closer what Kira had picked and it caused a huge behaviour. Durring all this time we had a hard time with getting people to see what we went through becuase in CHADS play groups and assessments he generally had no behaviours, and his dad was always gone finally got to see a huge meltdown. Braedons meltdown went on and on and on I grabbed my video camera to tape him so finally iI could show people what I have been trying to for months. That night Braedon tore my whole house apart and the camera had to stop so I could ensure his safety. He would tear my bedroom apart throw 27inch tv's down anytihng he could get his hands on. My husband and I sat there in disbelief, my daughter was crying she was so scared for him and us. Finally 6 hours into his meltdown he crashed in my room, we left him there as we were hoping he would sleep for the rest of the night. 30 minutes later he woke up and its like nothing stopped he got back up and went right back into the meltdown. 11 hours since the meltodwn started we decided to take him to our emergency room. There Braedon continued and the DR had to give him a adult dose shot to calm him down to sleep but that didnt even stop him. I was bawling I felt like a terrible mom. My husband just sat there and was in disbelief that this had been a result of whats been happening for months prior. The dr decided it was best to admit him into pediatrics and get him assessed and because we thought he had another seizure they wanted to make sure he was ok.

I so badly wanted to stay with him but the staff thought it would be best to go home and get some well needed rest. Leaving him was so hard and I dont think I slept well at all and went back to the hospital the next day at 7am to be with him. There two pediatritions came and talked to me and because of all the history decided it was best to medicate him on risperidol and informed me to call my local FSCD ( family services for children with disabilites) to get him some funding for behavioural services and respite services. Few weeks went by the medication seemed to be helping him slowly his behaviours were going down, he got into a PDD (predevelopmental preschool) program, got into a great agency to work with him and us on getting him back on the right track.

Durring all of this our third was born a little girl, Hailey. She was a good baby slept well had no issues and I the scares of having another baby with the same issues as Brae left my mind. Hailey hit her milestones, walked and talked well, she was a bright little baby. Things were going well , Braedon was doing well all our kids were happy. We did have been talked about our daughter Kira about her possibly having ADHD and she would be assessed but other then that life seemed to be back on the mend. When Hailey his about 15 months things started happening. Hailey would eat anything she could put in her mouth, batteries, her stool, string, money just anything. Hailey was diagnosed with PICCA, her behaviours were getting just like Braedons were, she stopped playing with the kids I babysat and wouldn't wanna play with anyone new, Her behaviours were getting worse and history started repeating itself but I thought "she can talk Braedon couldnt shes not autistic." She could do a 60 peice puzzle brand new in 5 minutes, she memorized songs after hearing them once. routines if not kept made her flip out for hours, and the whole autism fear quickly came back to our minds. Dr did assessments and worked with me for almost 6 months of going to his office crying cause she wasnt sleeping and her behaviours and how I couldnt leave my house to do grocery shopping even because it threw her off. Our dr finally said to me I think she is ASD as well but he felt she was more on the asperger side. My life again fell to the pit of my stomach. Kira was assessed in the summer of '08 and was seen by phsychologist and the result was she was ADHD and had co-morbid mood disorder. She would cry on the drop of a dime, think suicidal thoughts just wasnt happy like she was before. Our family life became a whirlwind again dealing with school officials and FSCD and fighting for funding for our kids to get help. I kept saying early intervention is key but FSCD makes it nearly impossible to concentrate on our kids and focus on fighting the government.

Today....were working still with getting things situated with our children . I will continue to be a parent who will fight till the end for my kids and what I feel they need and deserve. My kids are my blessings. I get comments like " I dont know how you do it?" My kids didn't ask for this, my kids weren't bad and got these disabilties. My kids are the best kids I know, we may have some difficuties but at the end of the day I will protect them and do what I can to give them the life they deserve. If Im having a bad day I just look at my kids and am amazed at everything they have accomplished and WILL accomplish in their lives.


Please keep coming back to my blog I know its new and Im just starting to get used to this but I will try to get on a few times a week or month to update. It may be boring reading but for me I wanna share the happy and bad times dealing with autism and show the world these kids are a true gift from God.

Thanks for reading and If you have questions or just wanna make a comment please do so. I respect everyones opinions but please if you feel like you need to attack just leave.

~ Brandi ~