Wasting my money

These last few days I have been sitting down and devising a therapy plan for Elizabeth for next year. This year was rather disappointing. We had three different Speech Therapists and each one started off rearing to go but by the sixth week, when there was no obvious results, started getting the look of dejection about them. When the third therapist said, “we just don’t want to waste your money” I put my foot down and explained that I was not wasting my money, that Elizabeth has indeed improved significantly over the last year. A year and a half ago I could not get her into the room, I’m sure her screams could be heard from blocks away. Now she will sit happily at the table doing hand over hand for half an hour or more. And whilst she still does not use words she is much more vocal now and has a much higher comprehension level. I explained that I did not expect results instantly, this was after-all a marathon not a sprint. Autism is not something that can be fixed or cured like stuttering, despite what certain therapists want you to believe.

In the last couple of months the Speech and Occupational therapist have worked together with Elizabeth. Whilst this approach may seem good on the face of it, two therapists together after-all must be better then one, the sessions ended up evolving into a higgly piggly affair with nothing much being achieved. Next year we will be attending separate Speech and Occupational Therapy sessions with clear attainable goals set by me. I do not wish to ‘cure’ my daughter. Her autism is who she is. But I also want her to achieve her full potential.