The road of recovery

This afternoon my son was in his room "kicking his ball around". This is one of those solitary things he likes to do to decompress. Well, I heard him doing some verbal stims. He loves all things truck. He likes to make diesel truck sounds sometimes, typically when we are dealing with yeast. I called to him and said he needed to stop. He came to me and was upset about that. He said that one day he wants a diesel truck, he likes to pretend that he has one now and if he made these sounds at school people may make fun of him. I pulled him onto my lap and we talked. Yes indeed, people may make fun of him because sometimes people make fun of behaviors they don't understand. I asked him if he did that at school. He quickly said he does not do that at school. Home needs to be his soft place to land. I told him that he was safe at home, no one would make fun of him here and he can do what he needs to do.

So does Autism recovery mean no stims? Nope, not always. Does recovery mean no more supplements or diet? Nope, not here. But our recovery includes a child who understands his brain works differently and he needs an outlet that may mean some teasing. So he realizes that and only does it at home. Wow. How far he's come. His ability to understand that whole concept and to be able to tell me about it is huge and a testament to his recovery.

Recovery takes time and is as individual as each child. There is no finish line. I see it as a continual work in progress. And each step should be celebrated!