Autism May Have Saved My Life

My friend Ryan helped me out during this crazy circus week.  Unbeknownst to me he wrote this post an hour before having his gallbladder removed.  He is that Guy.  So, he has the honor of covering for me while Chickadee is having surgery for her G-tube.  (a feeding tube in her stomach-she can still eat)  He also does awesome work at this site of his, as well as that site which he co-authors.  He is completely amazing.  If you like Twitter, follow him @NoMoreBacon, but be sure to pack a girdle, because your abs are gonna ache from the lunchtime belly laughing.  Oh! and he is the one that took my other blog from limping to fabulous.   

I asked Ryan to write about how his son's autism affected his own health.  Please savor Ryan Sullivan of No More Bacon:

Autism May Have Saved My Life

Now I know that’s a really bizarre thing to say. How a disorder that affects so many children could have had some type of positive impact on my life doesn’t really make any sense does it? Or does it?

For those of you who don’t know, or just don’t know me, I have a 3 (almost 4) year old son with autism. His official diagnosis is “high functioning autism.” 90% of people wouldn’t have any idea he had autism by watching him play at a playground. He runs and jumps and plays just like any “normal” child. Then there’s the awkward moment when another child or an adult starts talking to Collin and they expect a “normal” 3 year old response.

You see, even though my son is basically a genius (not bragging, he’s been tested and everything), he can’t talk.  He makes some hard consonant sounds but not really any words. He has a really hard time playing with other kids and is an absolute pro at flipping out completely when his routine is not followed exactly. Gratefully all of those things are improving little by little. He’s working really hard! He started going to school full time (25+ hours a week) when he turned 3 and also has private therapy sessions outside of school. Our outlook is definitely optimistic.

That being said, recognizing that Collin had autism in the first place was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to deal with. He grew and developed just like any toddler until he was about 15 months old. Then things started to change. He wouldn’t roll the ball back and forth with us anymore, he stopped answering to his name, and a bomb could have gone off in the same room without startling him. I quietly watched and observed. All children develop differently and I didn’t want to cause any unneeded stress by making the assumption that he was deaf, or had autism, or anything of the sort. For 3 months I read online forums and compared symptoms to Collin. About the time he was 18 months old I knew. I was 98% positive he had autism before we met with any doctors.

I knew I was going to break her heart, but I had to tell my wife Jackie. I knew we had to get Collin help as quickly as possible for the best results.  At first she couldn’t believe I would even bring it up.  She was sure I was crazy.  Then a few weeks passed and we decided to have him tested.  Most doctor’s weren’t willing to say he had autism before his 2^nd birthday, but many said it looked like he “may” have autism.

The whole process was extremely stressful and emotionally trying.  I started to eat like I’ve never eaten before. My health hadn’t been good but it got really bad.  I was at my absolute fattest (near 400 pounds) and I just kept eating.  Food was the way I dealt with the stress of medical bills, and doctor visits, and coming to the realization that my first born son very well could end up being “the weird kid.”  I was letting the trial kill me.

After the initial downward dive though, something changed in me.  I knew I had really jeopardized my health to the point I wasn’t going to live to be an old man.  Then I looked at my wife and thought about her trying to raise Collin alone.  I couldn’t handle the heartbreak.  I knew that I needed to be there for him and for her.  Raising a child alone would be hard enough, but Collin brought some added challenges to the table.  I knew I had to change.  I knew I had to take control of my life.  If I was going to be able to help my wife and son I had to be able to have control of my life first.  The whole “put your own oxygen mask on first before helping others” idea.

Now does it make more sense when I say that autism may have saved my life?  Had Collin not been born with autism I may have continued to neglect my health for years and years.  Because of him I’ve lost 140 pounds in the last year.  Because of him I have my life back.  Autism helped save my life.

-Ryan @ No More Bacon