My Special Girl

Let me tell you about my little Charlotte.  She has unruly dark blond curls and wears pink glasses for an eye that turns in when she is tired.

She tests above grade level in math and reading.  She is hooked on the Magic Tree House series, wants to travel the canals of Venice, and is Rainbow Dash's biggest fan.   She likes to tie knots and build things.  She excels at games that require spatial reasoning.  She collects rocks and pebbles.

On Friday, doctors confirmed something that we already strongly suspected: in addition to her ADHD, our daughter meets the criteria for a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, level one (also known as high functioning autism or Asperger's).  

This morning I told staff at her school about the diagnosis.  The first response was a sympathetic "aww," which was odd to hear.  Getting the diagnosis isn't bad news to me.  We already knew Charlotte had these issues and needed support.  As I wrote on Instagram this weekend receiving a diagnosis "means her quirks and difficulties have a name, and she will soon be getting the support she needs for all her strengths to shine."

On Saturday afternoon, Charlotte had some difficulty at a neighbor girl's birthday party and ran home in tears.  After helping her calm down and talking through what upset her at the party, there was a natural opening to talk about the fact that she has autism and what that means.  So now she knows.

The truth will set you free.  Knowledge is power.  These and other similar phrases echo through my mind and heart whenever I think about my precious girl.

Now we know.