By Amanda Collins

My son is smart, funny and he has an amazingly good memory.

He also has autism. I learned that in 1970, 1 in 10,000 children were diagnosed with autism. When he was diagnosed, it was 1 in 110 and now it is 1 in 68 children, according to online sources.

Our journey may not be that different than that of many others.

I took both of my children for a well child visit in 2006. My oldest child was two at the time, and my youngest was 15 months younger.

I remember talking to the pediatrician about my oldest saying only two words but yet my daughter, who is the youngest, had a larger vocabulary and was saying seven words.

The pediatrician told me that it’s normal for boys to develop slower than girls and not to worry. I insisted that my son was seen and evaluated by a speech therapist.

At that time, I knew nothing about autism. I just knew that he wasn’t talking like he should be for his age.

He was put in speech therapy after the evaluation. During those speech appointments, I discussed other things that I noticed he was doing. For instance, he was obsessed with doors; he played with doors by just opening and closing them.

He had sensory issues as well, like not wanting his feet to touch grass. He also gagged when he was near strong-smelling food.

When playing with his cars, he lined them up in a row or sometimes, he would lie on the ground, rolling a car back and forth while just watching the wheels.

After someone told me I should look it up, I went online and typed “autism” in the search box. I sat there staring at my screen, shocked as I read the results. It felt like at least some of the information described my child: not looking at objects when someone has pointed to the object; having trouble relating to others or showing no interest in other people; avoiding eye contact and preferring to be alone; repeat or echo words or phrases said to them, or repeat words or phrases in place of normal language; having trouble adapting when there is a change in routine; and having unusual reactions to the way things smell, taste, look, feel, or sound.

I also learned that diagnosing the disorder can be difficult because there are no medical tests that can help. A child’s behavior and development will be looked at by a doctor to make a diagnosis, according to online sources.

My next step was taking my son to see a developmental pediatrician. On our first visit, I was assured it wasn’t autism. I went home believing that. After all, it was a specialist, right?

Months went by and the behaviors worsened.

I printed online materials about autism, highlighting all the things that I saw that seemed to describe my child. Armed with that, I revisited that developmental pediatrician, who again told me my child did not have autism.

I decided a second opinion was needed, because as a mother, I knew.

It was during that first visit with another provider that my son was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, a neurological disorder that usually presents in children between the ages of 18 months and five years of age.

As a military wife living in Virginia Beach, I leaned on a best friend to help when my husband was on duty. I worked a full time job at a busy law firm and also spent a lot of time each week taking my son to therapy.

I watched what was done with him in therapy from another room so I could continue it at home. I even took him to occupational therapy for his feeding issues. There, we hit a brick wall and made no progress.

Fast forward to today, I have a 14-year-old boy who has made great progress since he was two.

I also have learned much along the way.

Not all individuals with autism are the same. My son is on the high functioning end. Today, most of the behaviors he had when he was young are gone.

He has some social deficits, but he longs to be sociable. He still is extremely selective when making his food choices, so foods are still an issue. He continues to struggle with sensory issues. He doesn’t like fire alarms or drills or the buzzer in the school gym.

Although there is no cure for autism, there are opportunities to create awareness and educate others.

For example, April is Autism Awareness Month and April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day. A common symbol for autism awareness is the autism ribbon. This ribbon is a puzzle piece with different colors.

The pattern represents the complexity of the autism spectrum while the different colors and shapes represent the diversity of people and families living with autism, according to online sources.

If concerned about a loved one, voice those concerns to a doctor. If you are told not to worry as I was, ask for an evaluation.

I can’t help but wonder where my son would be today if I had just taken what the initial pediatrician said about boys developing slower. What if I didn’t get early intervention?

It’s okay to seek a second opinion, especially if you don’t feel like you are being heard. If you have a concern, local help is available, even for a child less than three years old.

Ann Fulcher, director of special education in the Patrick County School division, can begin the process for an evaluation for services.

Research has shown that early intervention can improve a child’s development, and Fulcher said the sooner a child gets help the better, “especially if it’s a speech referral, even autism.”

The Chatterbox Speech and Language Therapy, LLC also is located in Stuart. It offers a variety of services, including speech and language therapy, ABA therapy, oral motor therapy, assistive technology services and behavior therapy. For more information, call (540) 230-1582.

More information is offered online at www.tacanow.org/ or www.autism-society.org.