Hi, I've never posted before always been a bit of a lurker.
My eldest two boys both have their final autism assessment appointment next week, where I'm hoping they will get their diagnosis but I'm also terrified they won't and I will have to go right back to the beginning of a really long journey to be put on the pathway.
They went into school the other day to do the final observations of them in a school setting where they mask the most.
For context my eldest is now 7 and I have been on this journey since he was about 2 years old, it's exhausting like mosto n this journey will know. He is a high masker at school so I have never had their support, they just call him sensitive and tell me I need to be tougher. But at home and in other settings he is the complete opposite and I'm thankful that a health visitor picked up on this at home.
My middle child who is almost 5 has always had lots of medical involvement, he had glu ear and with that came a speech delay and he's always been developmentally slightly behind that of a child his age, he sees a paediatrician for potential epilepsy (the specialist thinks it hopefully just blanking episode from being overloaded sensory wise) and a paediaitrican eho deals with everything else like the need for melatonin and we're awaiting blood test from genetics. But his school again are adamant that again school he isn't the child we describe and that other professionals describe him as.
I myself am diagnosed with autism and ADHD but I was only diagnosed this year at 28 years old and spent my whole childhood being told I wasn't and I was just sensitive. It sounds dramatic but I think if I had support as a child I would maybe have been able to cope with the everyday life now. I don't want my boys to experience life the way I have, I want them to have every opportunity but they are struggling.
I also have a 2 year old little boy who is now starting to show all the signs as well and I feel like I'm going to end up having to fight for him as well as the boys all over again.
I know a diagnosis doesn't lead to anything really (at least where we live) but I feel like I would have more footing to argue with the school that they do need reasonable adjustments in school.
Anyone else have a child get their diagnosis even though they mask so much at school?