Trigger Warning

So you have a special someone who is neurodiverse. Everybody's journey to diagnosis is different and I was in denial to start with. I kept dismissing all the behaviour clues into excuses..."Well he's the youngest in the year!" "Oh he's just boisterous!...He's a boy!" "Everyone has tantrums like this!" etc etc.

When we started down the exploration path, I was still reluctant. In my head he was a unique and busy four year old and we didn't need to put a label on him. In fact I had this conspiracy theory that his academic record would be forever marked and he'd be red-flagged and it would jeopardise his future! Dramatic much! (more on the diagnosis journey on a future post.)

When we did start getting reports through and multiple diagnosis to reference, I felt completely overwhelmed. The reports were incredibly long and detailed and the 'Helpful Reading Suggestion' lists were endless. I didn't know where to start. So I read and I googled, and I joined forums...and there I would stumble across parents with neurodiverse children who just seemed so together and knowledgeable and informed. For me this was a major trigger....

I felt like I didn't know enough, I was letting my child down by not knowing all the information out there. When the diagnosis start to come through, there are decisions that you need to make about school situation, SEN support, additional support, the Local Authority net. There is a lot going on.

Looking back I would tell myself not to PANIC, this is definitely not a sprint, this journey is slow and steady. Take the bits of information that work for you right now, don't try to become the expert overnight. You will make mistakes, but that's ok. Find friendly ears and don't get to concerned by the well meaning..."Oh you should try...!" Sometimes too many suggestions meant to help, can have the opposite effect.

So take your time, find advocates that are on the same page as you. Don't forget you are not alone on this journey, but sometimes pulling back can be necessary. Find fabulous experts who prop you up and you can refer to when worried. It is worth asking at your health centre if there is a GP who specialises in the area of neurodiverse child development.

Remember you are in complete control as to when you share the information, if you ever want to. I chose not to tell the other school parents, not even my closest mum friends until I had my head round all the information. For me the time was right after about five years into our journey, but it will be different for everyone.

It is important not to compare your Step 1 with someone else's Step 91...your journey is unique to you and your special little person.