There are many faces to autism. None look the same. One of those faces is the 3-year-old son of Nathan and Lyndsey Southern.
“Johnathan was just recently diagnosed, but we’re waiting for his final appointment to find out exactly where he’s at on the spectrum,” said Lyndsey Southern, who has a blended family with Nathan that also includes Emma, 7; Jeslynn, 6; and Jackson, 4. “Right now, he’s diagnosed with autism and a language impairment.”
Navigating the world of autism can be complicated. No case is the same but Southern realized Johnathan was just not doing some of the things his siblings had.
“I realized at about 18 months to 2 years that something was going on. Up until that age, he was hitting every milestone that he should have been. He walked on time, he would say mom and dad, the normal
stuff. Then around 18 months, he plateaued,” said Southern. “He wasn’t picking up any new vocabulary, he wasn’t wanting to play with others, he’d get very anxious in social settings, he started grabbing his ears when he’d get upset, and he always insisted on lining his toys in a perfect row.”
The Southerns took their little boy to a specialist in Evansville for a more in-depth diagnosis so they could better understand the world he lives in.
“One of the main challenges we have faced is communication. He is non verbal, and it’s frustrating for me sometimes but I know it has to be 10 times more frustrating for him,” said Southern who said one of Johnathan’s constant interests is dinosaurs. “People ask me all the time, “what’s it like to be autistic?” I can’t answer that perfectly, because I really don’t know what goes on in his mind.
The best way I’ve learned to explain it is, imagine being in a foreign country. You don’t know the language or the culture at all. So, you’re stuck trying to navigate through life on your own with very little understanding of what’s going on in the world you’re living in. You eventually adapt to things. That’s what we’re trying to do now. We’re adapting, and learning how his world operates.”
To help Johnathan, he completed speech therapy/occupational therapy through First Steps until he was 3, and he’s now going to KidStuff Preschool where he gets speech and occupational therapy once a week.
“There’s a couple misconceptions I feel people have. One being that autistic people aren’t smart. Someone once said to me, “but he’s so smart. Are you sure he’s autistic?” Yes! People with autism aren’t any less intelligent than you and I. Our son is very smart. He understands every word you are saying to him, and can figure out solutions appropriate for his age,” said Southern. “Another misconception is, once
you meet one person with autism you’ve met them all. Not true. Every autistic individual is different. What works for our son, may not work for someone else’s child. They’re each unique in their own ways.”
Southern said she also often hears people say those with autism don’t like other kids.
“That’s also not true. Our son loves his siblings. He just has some issues with social skills right now, and has a hard time showing that he likes playing with them,” she said.
In hopes of helping others better understand how the world of autism works and to provide more resources for families and those with autism, the Southerns organized an Autism Speaks walk last weekend at the Plainville Park.
That walk raised more than $1,200 for Autism Speaks and there’s still an opportunity for others to help raise more.
“Donations can be made online at http://act.autismspeaks.org/site/TR/Walk/MichiganIndiana?px=5436793&pg=personal&fr_id=5231,” said Southern, who said Johnathan led the pack of walkers in his remote controlled Jeep.
Source: Washington Times Herald