CNN iReport

Our youngest son was diagnosed with Asperger's (a form Autism), almost four years ago.  He was ten years old, and we had known for nearly all of his life that there was something going on other than the ADHD he'd been diagnosed with in first and second grade.  We became more and more worried as we saw unusual behaviors, including the self-injury that can be seen in one of the pictures, and dealt with speech issues that made it nearly impossible for us to understand him.  Doctor's continually assured us that we were simply seeing developmental delays, and that he would "catch up."  The phrase "catch up" became a common refrain that we realized really meant, "We have no idea."

After watching our highly intelligent son fall prey to bullies and teasing and fall behind in school due to his behavioral quirks, and becoming frustrated with both our doctor and the schools - neither of whom felt the problem was their problem and referred us to the other - we forced the issue and finally were referred to a specialist who made the diagnosis.  As most doctors will tell you, early detection is key...and this was a far cry from early.  Still, we were relieved to finally have a name to put to our son's struggle.

All too soon we discovered that a diagnoses isn't even half of the battle.  Our school system has no idea at all what to do with a high-functioning autistic student.  Low-functioning they understand, but what to do with a student smarter than most kids his age, but who has a much younger emotional age and a complete inability to read the non-verbal cues and body language that forms the basis of nearly all human interaction?  Speech therapy for elementary school grades is common, but continuing that therapy into middle and high school is unheard of and the resources simply aren't available.  Essential social skills training is hit or miss, and often conducted by adults with little to no training.  Private specialists are expensive, and treatment is not covered by insurance because it's an "educational" issue, not a health issue.

No one can tell us what level our son (now 14) will function at.  Some people with Aspergers do go on to have functionally normal lives, with jobs and families - and some don't.  We have no idea where our son will fall on that particular spectrum, so all we can do is give him every opportunity we can...and hope.