Diagnosis

I finally got a schedule with the doctor I originally wanted for Micah. It took 1 whole year. I called the clinic in June 2013 and I got my slot last Monday, June 17, 2014. Wow! That doctor is certainly in demand. She's Dr. Alexis Reyes. I've seen her name on various blogs and most feedbacks were quite positive. Coincidentally, three weeks before we were called for an assessment, I saw a poster of a seminar called "GAP 3 Autism Across Ages". Mike and I were just checking out the new Cinema at High St in BGC. As I was about to ask the person in the counter about the schedule, the small poster caught my eye and immediately, I took note of the details. Somehow, I knew that my son is somewhere in the spectrum. Nobody had to tell me. In fact, that was my initial "scare". In April 2013, I was sleepless. I researched day and night. It wasn't about what Micah has. I listed down all the red flags  and my research were all to rule out Autism. I couldn't accept it at first. There was no diagnosis but I knew in my heart. I would cry out to God. I asked so many questions. They were mostly Why's. Months after, my prayers were of healing for Micah and wisdom for me, Mike and Mikel.

Before we got to this day, my husband and I had been through a lot of rough patches in our relationship. I have been telling him that I know Micah has "something" and he has to see it too. I wanted him to be on the same boat with me so we could help Micah together. I was begging him to just open his eyes but he was so much in denial. He just could not even consider the thought. He thought, like everybody around him, that Micah is perfectly fine.Perhaps it was his way of coping. It was months of giving him small details. I made him see what I was seeing. I spotted and identified red flags just when Mike was around. Little by little, he was opening up to the cruel possibility. And that opening lead the way to the initial therapy. Even when Mike already agreed to therapy, he still stated that it was just to please me. It hurt me so much that he thinks that way. But my feelings were not important at any point. My pride had to take a back step so that Micah could get the help he needed. All this time, it was more important for me that Micah gets Early Intervention so that he could live a life as close to normal as possible. Being a teacher myself and seeing special kids everyday in school, I knew it was all possible through Early Intervention. I wanted that for Micah.

On the day of our appointment with Dr. Reyes, the doctor suggested that Mikel, my eldest son, stay in the room during the assessment. We were there for about 2 and a half hours. The last 30 minutes, I have asked Mikel to leave the room as he was getting a bit restless and loud (perhaps bored). But Micah did so well. He wasn't bored at all. He played so nicely and the doctor got so much stuff and noted them all. She wrote a referral letter to Tisha of Kids in Motion (McKinley Taguig). Coincidentally again, I have called Kids in Motion in the week of Micah's brithday to schedule an assessment. The letter indicated that Tisha sees and monitor  Micah who has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Boom! I read the recommendation only after we left the clinic. The whole time the doctor and I were speaking, I think she assumed I already knew because I never acted surprised when she pointed out Micah's characteristics. In fact I validated her observations and agreed with her most of the time. There were still some questions in my mind up to that day. She certainly answered a lot of them without knowing. She said, she's so glad I caught it so early. She called this time "Golden...rather Platinum!" The whole time we were referring to Micah having ASD like a known fact, but I still had to read the letter so it would sink in...and it did.

It was still a sad time but there was a feeling of relief. At least now I can say, I wasn't imagining things. The doctor felt a bit disappointed that Micah did not benefit much from his initial therapy. It was not intensive enough in her opinion. She mentioned that in the US, therapy can start as early as 6 months. She reiterated the importance of the whole family working as a team in helping Micah. She encouraged me by saying it is not yet too late, we can now move forward and get Micah the best help. And hopefully now, Mike will want to be part of it.

Micah and me during his Fiesta themed birthday party in May 2014.