Things I am worried about and things I am not...

Things I am not worried about...

The psychologist said that it will be really easy to tell once school starts what problems River actually has and he could be dismissed really quickly if they don't have any major concerns after observing him through several classroom visits. River is very smart and they said that sometimes really smart can sometimes look autistic. He knows all of his letters and what sounds they make, he knows all his numbers up to 20. He knows a lot of stuff! He does love to play with people and interact with others, but so did Dawson.

Things I am worried about...

The evaluator couldn't say without a doubt that River didn't need some kind of services. She did notice several things throughout the observation that were off. I have noticed, and his ECI speech therapist noticed that in the last month River's speech has become a little more garbled where it used to be really clear. His has started babbling again sometimes and he hasn't done that since he was a baby. His eye contact has gotten worse and he wouldn't look people in the eye during the observation. He has a hard time answering questions about what happened in the past and doesn't initiate conversation. Right now 3 (River's 3rd b-day is August 10th), is when all of the behaviors start to really come out if a child is autistic. I used to have in my mind what autism meant, a child flapping their arms in the corner not communicating with others. That is why for so long I thought that couldn't be what was wrong with Dawson, he was so loving, he played with others. What I have learned from dealing with for the past few years is that there is a large spectrum over which children can be. I am very worried just because of how old he is and some recent behavior. With the genetics of it all, I can't help but be worried.

I do know that I am doing everything I can to get him the help he needs, should there be any major problems. I hate the wait and see game but that is where I am right now.