My Son’s Autism Journey in Chronological Order

Every person with autism—and their family—follows a unique journey. My son is ten years old, and I wanted to share what his journey has looked like so far.

Why? For many reasons—to raise awareness for those outside the autism community—to offer relatability and inspiration for those within it—and most importantly, to encourage anyone who has a quiet gut feeling that their child may not be meeting developmental milestones alongside same-age peers to pursue an evaluation.

Additionally, many well-meaning friends and family have said things such as, “I’d never know he was on the spectrum if you hadn’t told me.” And yes, in a snapshot of a person’s life, you might not see what happens behind the scenes. But I think it’s important to know.

The best thing we ever did for our son was not “wait and see.” It was “find out now” so he had early access to the support he needed.

And now his unique ten-year neurodivergent chronology.

0-18 Months

• Normal pregnancy and birth
• Typically developing
• Reached all developmental milestones in a typical time frame

18 months

• Regressed in ALL verbal and most nonverbal communication
• Struggled with gross and fine motor skills
• Struggled with disruptions in routines
• Struggled when we couldn’t meet his needs because we didn’t know what they were due to communication barriers
• Early Intervention Evaluation and began in in-home behavior therapy

2 years old

• Diagnosed with Speech and Language Disorder and Childhood Apraxia of Speech by Licensed Speech Language Pathologist
• Diagnosed with Fine and Gross Motor Delay by Licensed Occupational Therapist
• Began Speech and Occupational Therapy
• Started preschool to be around typically developing peers
• Major form of communication was sign-language

2 ½ years old

• Diagnosed with severe ADHD by a Licensed Developmental Pediatrician
• Severe maladaptive behaviors emerged, such as self-injury, aggression, and elopement (leaving a safe and secure space and wandering into what could be an unsafe and insecure space)

3-4 years old

• Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Unspecified Anxiety by Licensed Developmental Pediatrician
• Began medication to minimize symptoms. Trial and error led to Genesight genetic testing
• Kicked out of preschool due to maladaptive behaviors and a lack of independent toileting and feeding skills
• Evaluation through Early Intervention for ESE PreK
• Began ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis ) 30 hours per week in clinic, in home, in school
• Began ESE PreK
• Verbal and nonverbal communication slightly increased, maladaptive behaviors remained the same

5-6 years old  

• Attended Autism Charter School (received full Speech and OT services at school)
• Still received ABA services at home, 4 hours per day, five days a week after school
• During COVID spent 6 hours per day, 5 days a week in clincal ABA therapy in lieu of school
• Private math and reading tutoring
• Verbal and nonverbal communication continued to increase, maladaptive behaviors remained the same

6 years old     

• Full Psych Eval by Licensed Child Psychiatrist for complete DSM–5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Health Disorders) diagnoses.
• • 299.0 Autism Spectrum Disorder, Requiring Level 3 supports (the highest), With intellectual Disability and with Language Disorder and Social Communication Disorder
• • 317 Intellectual Development Disorder (Intellectual Disability) Mild
• • 314.01 Attention Deficit Disorder-Combined Type
• • 300.00 Unspecified Anxiety Disorder by history315.4 Developmental Coordination Disorder

6-7 years old  

• Began Gen Ed 2^nd Grade with ESE services in place
• Received 3 days a week of ABA
• Began an afterschool community program 2 days a week and that offered social skills
• New Full Psych Eval by Licensed Child Psychiatrist for additional DSM-5 Diagnoses
  • F81.0 Specific Learning Disorder, Moderate Severity with Impairment in Reading Comprehension
  • F81.81 Specific Learning Disorder, Severe Severity with Impairment in Written Expression
  • F80.2 Language Disorder

7-8 years old  

• Diagnosed with Encopresis by Medical Doctor and unofficially ARFID eating disorder (Avoidant/ Restrictive Food Intake Disorder) by developmental pediatrician
• Began an Autism Charter School for 3^rd grade
• Midyear returns to Gen Ed per autism charter school’s recommendation
• Back in Gen Ed he received full ESE services
• Increased from 2 to 3 days per week in afterschool community program still in social skills
• Decreased from 3to 2 days a week in ABA
• Started Karate 🙂
• Summer camp at the community center and reading tutoring

8-9 years old  

• Due to a family move, transferred to a new public school
• ESE Evaluation showed no need for pull-out ESE services and minimal accommodations
• Wins FIRST place in class speech competition 🙂
• Stopped ABA completely to attend afterschool community program full time which also offered OT services to assist with still moderately delayed fine and gross motor skills and feeding therapy for ARFID.
• Summer camp at the community center and reading tutoring

10 years old   

• Completely mainstreamed in 5^th grade 🙂
• On grade level in all subjects 🙂
• Selected by school to work in the campus café 🙂
• Still at community center taking social skills, karate, and OT. But most importantly loving his time with his friends while he’s there. 🙂

In Conclusion

Yes, he still has autism and additional diagnoses—but today, our family has the knowledge, tools, and support team to truly thrive. We share this to highlight the lasting power of early intervention. Those early years were hard. We missed events, dinners, and celebrations. Our world became very small—but the work mattered.

Today, we can do those things again. They may look different than they would without autism, but we have learned to adapt, and that is more than enough for us. Our family is as unique as our son, and we embrace that fully.

Our current challenge is ARFID—one more step on our ongoing journey. With continued teamwork and support, we are making progress, and I am confident we will continue to move forward.

This journey has reshaped how we define success: not by comparison, but by growth, resilience, and becoming who our child is meant to be.

If you’re a caregiver with questions or concerns, trust your instincts. Big Abilities offers caregiver coaching to help you navigate this journey with confidence.

Autism doesn’t come with an instruction guide. It comes with a family who will never give up.

Autism Self-Advocate – Kelly Magro