Nyah & ASD - Update

If you didn't read the first post, start here.

So, to give an update on what's going on:

After I filled out at the autism tests for the charter school and was told Nyah was on the autism spectrum, the school sent someone from their special education department up to do some additional testing to create an IEP for Nyah. 

Well, to back up a little, my reason for wanting to find a specific diagnoses is to find out why Nyah was struggling with school work and having some behavior issues, and how to best address this, so that *we* - Kurt and I - could further tailor her education to meet her needs and help her learn life skills to better manage her emotions. 

I want to know the *why* or *what* is causing Nyah to struggle with her school work - is it a sensory processing disorder of some kind? Memory problem? Executive function problem? Input/Output problem? ADHD? Autism (differences in her neurological pathways)? What is causing her dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia? I've researched all these things and many of the symptoms of each are so similar that it's been impossible for me to pinpoint what going on. Which is why I turned to the "experts" or so I thought. 

Anyways, the charter school gave me the impression that the testing they would do for an IEP would give me the information I want. 

So in February, Nyah did the testing one-on-one with someone from the school. 

In April, Nyah did the end-of-school testing. 

In May, an IEP meeting was scheduled. 

The IEP meeting focused only on Nyah being behind in school subjects, it did not give me any clear reasons for *what* is at the root of Nyah's struggles, and I did not see or receive any test results. Oh, and by the way, I was told they couldn't officially give her an autism diagnoses after all. 

There was, however, plenty "we're the experts and we know best" condescending attitude. Only it was done in a much nicer way than our previous public school testing experience, so it took me a few days to realize what had happened. 

And then I needed a few more days to decide what to do. 

I called our local children's hospital and made an appointment. It was 3 months away. Oh boy. Wait wait wait.

Nyah and I went to the appointment a couple weeks ago, and I spent the whole time talking through everything that has been going on for all of Nyah's life. Overall, it seemed okay, but still something felt a little off about it all. 

You see, here's the thing. I'm not looking for a therapist for Nyah. I'm not looking for extensive therapies, or interventions, or traipsing all over for her to be analyzed by one specialist after another. I'm not looking for someone to take this "problem" off my hands or make it disappear. 

I don't see it as a problem. 

It's challenging at times. It's a difference we need to know how to work with and I think identifying the difference could be key in figuring out how to proceed, but *most importantly* it's my beautiful, talented, amazing Nyah-girl, and I want her to be happy and to have the necessary life skills to find her own place in the world.

The next appointment is another month away. Sigh.

But here's something else you need to understand. I'm completely prepared for there to be no answer. In the end, the "experts" may not have the answer to my questions. 

And then what will we do? 

Keep on, keeping on.