D Day….. Diagnosis Day
We woke up early this morning and headed over to Forsyth to a Satellite location for the Marcus Autism Center. #awesomeDawson looked so cute in his new hair cut & rocking his Southern Adoornment "Homegrown" Georgia shirt. <3
I had trouble picking out our clothes for today. I know that sounds silly, but I couldn't find the outfit that best conveyed "I'm a great parent 
that loves my kid unconditionally, but I really need you to be gentle because I'm afraid the things you may have to say could hurt my heart because you may not be able to see just how awesome our Dawson is." That's a lot to expect from an outfit, but I thought that would be best for today. ;o)
Dawson must have known that today was going to be a big day with lots to do because he ended up falling asleep on the way there. This was probably good for me... I had a lot going through my mind. I mean, I'm one cool cucumber, but I really was so anxious about today and what they were going to say, as well as how Dawson would react to all the testing. It's alot to take in.
Well, when we got there we were greeted by a very pleasant woman who explained what we could expect from today and walked us through some more paperwork. After a few minutes in the waiting room Dr. Richardson came out and asked us to follow her to the room we would do the testing. Little did I know how great the impact that room would have on me that afternoon.
Dr. Richardson is naturally pleasant in demeanor and appearance. She didn't look to be wearing any make-up other than some powder, 
which made her seem very approachable & even more pleasant as I studied her. She dove right into the initial testing portion of the analysis which was VERY fast paced. This is the more formal portion of the testing. It was a little tough, but she was really good with him and extremely patient. Dawson was having a hard time sitting in the chair to focus on the activity at first, then kept finding his trucks & cars. But, once he got into a groove, he did GREAT!!! We were able to divert a potential meltdown pretty quickly and he seemed to be doing about 1/2 of the things she was wanting him to do. We took a 1/2 time break for snacks and to allow Dr. Richardson to setup the room for more of a "Play" setting for the last portion of the testing. After that last portion of the testing we did the research portion of our visit. Dawson sat strapped into a carseat and watched a few videos of kids playing for about 10 minutes while they collected data that told where his eyes looked. They hope that this technology can help revolutionize the diagnosis process. Funny enough, Taralee, the woman that greeted us when we first came in & was in charge of the research portion said that this machine hasn't been working at all lately, but worked for Dawson. Keep that in the back of your mind, because I'm going to put a bunch of pieces together that will blow your mind.... it totally blew my mind.
As soon as the video portion was done Dr. Richardson came back in with a folder to talk to us about the results of today. I knew when I saw that folder what she was going to say {the folder.... the unintrusively white folder that looked to be filled with several papers... You don't give away a folder unless you are dropping knowledge.... Didn't she see my outfit? It clearly says, "I'm a great parent that loves my kid unconditionally, but I really need you to be gentle because I'm afraid the things you may have to say could hurt my heart because you may not be able to see just how awesome our Dawson is..."}. She very softly explained the definition of autism and what major key points they would expect to see in someone who is autistic verses typically developing... Then she hugged the folder {yep, THAT folder} and told us Dawson is Autistic. I'm glad she kept talking, because it was at that point that I started falling apart... just a little bit. It was like I just got a hug and a bee sting all at once. We are validated in our concerns and are at the BEST place to get direction to help D, but she just said he has autism and that feels way heavier than I thought it would. Afterall, I thought that was the case, I'm not surprised, but my heart is a bit heavy, nonetheless. She went on to tell us he is significantly delayed in his development in virtually every way. He was at a 2 year old level for everything but his speech and language. They said he is at an 11 month old level for speech & language......Ouch. Dr. Richardson went on to explain that she felt that this result was underestimating him. Unfortunately with autistic children their inconsistency with speech may make it seem like they are far less developed than they actually are. This was a huge relief. The sweet Dr. we spent the morning with said she wanted to explain all of this so that we weren't shocked when we saw the results that would be mailed to us next week. Next she opened up the folder and explained what resources were available to us in the form of support groups, workshops, databases, & general information on Autism.
The last portion of our meeting was instructions on what to do next for Dawson. She said he needs to be in full-time 5 day a week PreK that specializes in Autism or has the therapies & teachers to accommodate his needs. This would provide social learning environments, focussed center work, as well as speech and occupational therapy at school. We need to continue our private o.t. & speech class as well as look into A.B.A. therapy. She said this was VERY expensive, but gave the best results. This combination of therapies would ensure that Dawson is getting a large quantity & good quality of services to help him learn and develop. She said we needed to start calling around TODAY to find him a preK. So, to cap it all up... intensive therapy will give him the best results.
WOW, that is a LOT to swallow in a small room. It's not hard to swallow, just a lot.
At the very end Dr. Richardson sealed the deal on how sweet she really is by commending us on how calmly we handle Dawson and the coping techniques we already use to help him transition & redirect from a meltdown. In that moment, that is what I needed to hear. I needed to hear that although we have a road that may not be easy, we are already doing so many GOOD, positive things for him. I was able to hear that we are good parents doing good things for our son... Our son with special needs... our autistic & totally #awesomeDawson {Clearly she understood what I was trying to convey in my outfit choice!!}
I need to be very clear and let you all know that there is no pity party here. My brain hurts, because let's be real, I have processed a LOT of information today. We are excited to take the next steps of our #teambritt adventure. We are praying that God lead us to the school that is best for Dawson & the needs he has.
Remember when I told you earlier I was going to blow your mind.... well, I'm dropping some knowledge on you that blew mine.
We asked Dr. Richardson how long the wait should have been for Dawson to be seen at Marcus Autism Center. She said 1 year. God opened that door and said 2 weeks for us.
We asked Dr. Richardson what the cost associated with the Marcus Autism Center would have been to get Dawson tested. She said $3,000. God laid out a plan so that we got paid $25. We made money. WHAT?!?
We asked about the visual research in the chair machine. She said it hasn't been working recently on their research subjects. God blessed us tremendously, because the chair worked for Dawson just like it was supposed to.
So, to recap, we only waited 2 weeks, when we should have had to wait 1 year {Dawson would be 4 y'all... FOUR!!} Instead of paying up to $3,000 out of pocket they paid us $25 for them to test D. Also, the chair that hasn't worked in quite some time miraculously worked for Dawson. Boom!!
We are so grateful for the tremendous favor we have received. We serve an awesome & mighty God who knows exactly how awesome HIS Dawson is <3
P.S. I don't think I've mentioned it enough, but Dawson is SOOOO lucky!! He has the BEST big sister in the world always playing with him & loving him to the moon!!! #Shaebird is so helpful, & loving, and in-tune with Dawson. She is such a blessing!!!!
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I had trouble picking out our clothes for today. I know that sounds silly, but I couldn't find the outfit that best conveyed "I'm a great parent that loves my kid unconditionally, but I really need you to be gentle because I'm afraid the things you may have to say could hurt my heart because you may not be able to see just how awesome our Dawson is." That's a lot to expect from an outfit, but I thought that would be best for today. ;o)
Dawson must have known that today was going to be a big day with lots to do because he ended up falling asleep on the way there. This was probably good for me... I had a lot going through my mind. I mean, I'm one cool cucumber, but I really was so anxious about today and what they were going to say, as well as how Dawson would react to all the testing. It's alot to take in.
Well, when we got there we were greeted by a very pleasant woman who explained what we could expect from today and walked us through some more paperwork. After a few minutes in the waiting room Dr. Richardson came out and asked us to follow her to the room we would do the testing. Little did I know how great the impact that room would have on me that afternoon.
Dr. Richardson is naturally pleasant in demeanor and appearance. She didn't look to be wearing any make-up other than some powder, which made her seem very approachable & even more pleasant as I studied her. She dove right into the initial testing portion of the analysis which was VERY fast paced. This is the more formal portion of the testing. It was a little tough, but she was really good with him and extremely patient. Dawson was having a hard time sitting in the chair to focus on the activity at first, then kept finding his trucks & cars. But, once he got into a groove, he did GREAT!!! We were able to divert a potential meltdown pretty quickly and he seemed to be doing about 1/2 of the things she was wanting him to do. We took a 1/2 time break for snacks and to allow Dr. Richardson to setup the room for more of a "Play" setting for the last portion of the testing. After that last portion of the testing we did the research portion of our visit. Dawson sat strapped into a carseat and watched a few videos of kids playing for about 10 minutes while they collected data that told where his eyes looked. They hope that this technology can help revolutionize the diagnosis process. Funny enough, Taralee, the woman that greeted us when we first came in & was in charge of the research portion said that this machine hasn't been working at all lately, but worked for Dawson. Keep that in the back of your mind, because I'm going to put a bunch of pieces together that will blow your mind.... it totally blew my mind.
As soon as the video portion was done Dr. Richardson came back in with a folder to talk to us about the results of today. I knew when I saw that folder what she was going to say {the folder.... the unintrusively white folder that looked to be filled with several papers... You don't give away a folder unless you are dropping knowledge.... Didn't she see my outfit? It clearly says, "I'm a great parent that loves my kid unconditionally, but I really need you to be gentle because I'm afraid the things you may have to say could hurt my heart because you may not be able to see just how awesome our Dawson is..."}. She very softly explained the definition of autism and what major key points they would expect to see in someone who is autistic verses typically developing... Then she hugged the folder {yep, THAT folder} and told us Dawson is Autistic. I'm glad she kept talking, because it was at that point that I started falling apart... just a little bit. It was like I just got a hug and a bee sting all at once. We are validated in our concerns and are at the BEST place to get direction to help D, but she just said he has autism and that feels way heavier than I thought it would. Afterall, I thought that was the case, I'm not surprised, but my heart is a bit heavy, nonetheless. She went on to tell us he is significantly delayed in his development in virtually every way. He was at a 2 year old level for everything but his speech and language. They said he is at an 11 month old level for speech & language......Ouch. Dr. Richardson went on to explain that she felt that this result was underestimating him. Unfortunately with autistic children their inconsistency with speech may make it seem like they are far less developed than they actually are. This was a huge relief. The sweet Dr. we spent the morning with said she wanted to explain all of this so that we weren't shocked when we saw the results that would be mailed to us next week. Next she opened up the folder and explained what resources were available to us in the form of support groups, workshops, databases, & general information on Autism.
The last portion of our meeting was instructions on what to do next for Dawson. She said he needs to be in full-time 5 day a week PreK that specializes in Autism or has the therapies & teachers to accommodate his needs. This would provide social learning environments, focussed center work, as well as speech and occupational therapy at school. We need to continue our private o.t. & speech class as well as look into A.B.A. therapy. She said this was VERY expensive, but gave the best results. This combination of therapies would ensure that Dawson is getting a large quantity & good quality of services to help him learn and develop. She said we needed to start calling around TODAY to find him a preK. So, to cap it all up... intensive therapy will give him the best results.
WOW, that is a LOT to swallow in a small room. It's not hard to swallow, just a lot.
At the very end Dr. Richardson sealed the deal on how sweet she really is by commending us on how calmly we handle Dawson and the coping techniques we already use to help him transition & redirect from a meltdown. In that moment, that is what I needed to hear. I needed to hear that although we have a road that may not be easy, we are already doing so many GOOD, positive things for him. I was able to hear that we are good parents doing good things for our son... Our son with special needs... our autistic & totally #awesomeDawson {Clearly she understood what I was trying to convey in my outfit choice!!}
I need to be very clear and let you all know that there is no pity party here. My brain hurts, because let's be real, I have processed a LOT of information today. We are excited to take the next steps of our #teambritt adventure. We are praying that God lead us to the school that is best for Dawson & the needs he has.
Remember when I told you earlier I was going to blow your mind.... well, I'm dropping some knowledge on you that blew mine.
We asked Dr. Richardson how long the wait should have been for Dawson to be seen at Marcus Autism Center. She said 1 year. God opened that door and said 2 weeks for us.
We asked Dr. Richardson what the cost associated with the Marcus Autism Center would have been to get Dawson tested. She said $3,000. God laid out a plan so that we got paid $25. We made money. WHAT?!?
We asked about the visual research in the chair machine. She said it hasn't been working recently on their research subjects. God blessed us tremendously, because the chair worked for Dawson just like it was supposed to.
So, to recap, we only waited 2 weeks, when we should have had to wait 1 year {Dawson would be 4 y'all... FOUR!!} Instead of paying up to $3,000 out of pocket they paid us $25 for them to test D. Also, the chair that hasn't worked in quite some time miraculously worked for Dawson. Boom!!
We are so grateful for the tremendous favor we have received. We serve an awesome & mighty God who knows exactly how awesome HIS Dawson is <3
P.S. I don't think I've mentioned it enough, but Dawson is SOOOO lucky!! He has the BEST big sister in the world always playing with him & loving him to the moon!!! #Shaebird is so helpful, & loving, and in-tune with Dawson. She is such a blessing!!!!
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