Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Fighting the Good Fight

Yesterday reminded me of the small battles I face everyday and how to handle them best.

We had a busy day planned and Joey woke up early, which means that it will be difficult to get him out of the house. He was on "Lego talking" which is You Tube Lego movies. He was angry that I told him to stop what he was doing. He told me the movie was not done yet. As I frantically tried to get everything ready for our 1st meeting with DDD (Department of Developmental Disabilities), I realized his backpack zipper was broken. One more thing that I needed to take care of! Joey eventually stormed half way down the stairs before declaring that he wasn't going any farther. I walked out and closed the door, knowing that he would soon follow, but in my rush, left behind all the paperwork I thought I needed for the meeting.

He was inevitably grumpy on the drive there but shortly before we arrived, asked for his daily muffins and told me he was happy.

Joey did well at DDD but as usual, made no eye contact and played by himself. That's exactly what the man wanted to see. At this point, it's been a few months since the paperwork process began. The man assigned to my case put him in the "at-risk for autism" category and advised me that someone from long term care would be calling me soon, as well as the case manager who will get services set up for Joey. I think it's too early to get excited but I feel like we made it through a very important roadblock. Usually, if you have the PDD-NOS diagnosis, you're not a severe enough case for help. I believe that no child should go without the help they need, especially before they enter school. Now is the time to make the greatest strides.

I did make a point clear to the man giving me the green light: I don't need a lot. I just want the services that they refuse to give private paying customers. This system is a joke. I don't want respite care. I just need habilitation for Joey.




To Be Continued...

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