Someone Somewhere

There's someone, somewhere, right now that's going to be in a situation I, or perhaps you were in...

Today is the start of Autism Awareness Month and while I think we should look more at autism understanding than awareness, I do think that we do need to be aware of that someone, somewhere that may have their life changed today.

For all of us on, or affiliated with, the autism spectrum, we've all had our own journey to where we are right now and it's unfortunate that those that need to know about the contents of my blog, or have read Dr. Temple Grandin's books, or perhaps know how you've handled the ups and downs will have no idea that any exists.

There is a person out there, much like myself in 2003, that will hear the words, "Yeah, there's no doubt about it, this is for sure an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis..." It's been 19 years since I heard those words but what comes next is vital to that someone somewhere.

I got awful info. The internet lied in 2003. The first thing I read said that there was going to be no job, no friends, and no happiness. I was staring into an abyss of misery that day. I was that someone somewhere that needed to know the journeys of those before me. 

It's a scary place to be given a diagnosis that someone may have never heard of. What does it mean? What are the limitations? What will the future look like? There are people today doing the same search I did in 2003. There's still misinformation out there but there's also so much more. There are so many voices that proudly state who they are, and that growth is always possible.

I have so much hope for the future. As the understanding of autism grows in society, so too will the chances of that someone somewhere right this second having a better introduction to their diagnosis. This isn't the deepest of blog posts to commemorate the start of April, but if you're hear and reading this you were that someone somewhere a while ago. You already have "awareness" and want as much understanding as possible. What I want you to be aware of this month is that, with 1 in 44 children being on the autism spectrum, there are many parents, siblings, and those that are going to be diagnosed that may simply need your story, your wisdom, or a bit of advice for some information about what autism could mean. As I said, we already are aware of the challenges, the strengths, the quirks, and all the beauty that may come with being on the autism spectrum, but for that someone somewhere, this very second as you read this, their world has just been turned upside down. They're scared as they don't really know what a spectrum of autism is. Perhaps today, perhaps tomorrow, perhaps from a year from now you may come across this someone somewhere and I hope you stay aware enough to realize that just one hopeful word, or pointing them in the right direction for encouragement, or literature, and most of letting them know that diagnosis or not, they, or their child, is still who they were before the doctor gave the diagnosis. There may be a diagnosis but that doesn't mean the diagnosis has to define them. Of course, you already know this, but when the time may come, I hope, I really do, that you can help that someone somewhere to avoid the abyss I found myself in back in 2003.