For the first time in his life, just this evening, Khalid asked to be taken to the toilet. Alhamdulillah. š
Today’s request of ‘a-wahn toy-lut’ is a huge step in getting Khalid completely out of diapers, InshaAllah. At the moment, he wears one to bed, or when we step out of the house as damage control in case of an accident. Generally he’s really good about holding it and waiting until he’s taken to the bathroom (which we do regularly when we’re out) but he’s never before asked to go on his own. Previously, if he had to go, but no one had offered to take him, we would just have an accident. And because people tend to take offense to their sofas being peed on, we would leave him in the diaper but treat him like he was potty trained.
But hey, my little man asked for the toy-lut! They grow up so fast, MashaAllah. š
YaY MashAllah. Quite the achievement considering I have doubts if I myself am toilet trained yet. And I am friggin’ old. Hmmm….
alhamdolillah, thats amazng!
Mabrook! š
Salaam alaikum,
I just discovered your blog…so many things on here that I relate to Subhanallah…so much so, that I feel like on the same exact page of a book but half way across the world. I am also 29 years old, have two kids: 4 year old Maryam who is developmentally typical and 3 year old Yusra who has Autism. Alhamdulillah for both of them. So I’m definitely relating to a lot of aspects of what you write about, and also your latest about the pendulum of our Imaan….it really is a struggle sometime and you can feel yourself sinking into that apathy and part of you is so tired/lazy that it just doesn’t care. May Allah (swt) protect us from this apathy and may He give us the tawfeeq to return to Him time after time, whether they be good or bad. Aameen. Inshallah I’m going to explore you’ll blog as much as time allows me. Meanwhile please keep us in ur du’aas as you and your family are in mine.
Jazakallah khair and a pleasure.
Amena, I would love, love to read how you’re doing with Yusra, because I don’t know any other practicing Muslim autism mothers, and it would be great to compare notes and learn from what you’re doing! Do you have a blog?
Whoop-dee-doo!
Abez, nope I don’t. I’m not even as close to as eloquent as you are. I sometimes think I should but at the very time when I need to write the most, I have a hard time organizing my thoughts coherently and I tend to ramble. Anyway, I gradually came to realize that Yusra was not developing as she should, much the same way you did with Khalid. By her 2nd birthday she had no words but did babble a little. By then though I had mentioned it to my Pediatrician and she had said “Just get her evaluated..what could it hurt?” So soon after she turned two, she was evaluated and found to have the communication skills and attention span of a 6-9 month old. The agency that evaluated her is part of the Regional Centers of California (an awesome group that is state funded) and they said Well, we’re not diagnosing her but let’s just address where she deficient and start her with ABA and speech therapy. So she started that when she was about 2 yrs and 4 months. (By the way, all of this happened after my divorce and since my ex-husband was not involved in any decisions of Yusra, I am beyond thankful to Allah swt for my parents and family who, even though, were confused and shocked, supported me and of course, Yusra, physically and emotionally). She was actually diagnosed around 2 years and 10 months. Just around her 3 birthday though, I got remarried to an awesome guy Alhamdulillah and the girls and I moved to Ohio. That was 4 months ago. However, since then she hasn’t had ABA which was making steady progress. bI am now desperate to find a program out here in Ohio, where they have absolutely no state funding for Autism, or very little compared to California. I’m trying to keep it consistent at home but it’s tough with all the changes we’re are going through, including me. She attends public preschool for a couple of hours a day and it’s good for her socially and she sometimes gets to practice what she’s learned. However, I have serious doubts about how much her communication skills are able to grow there.
Ok, so that’s some of Yusra’s background and mine thrown in. If you think being a mommma of an autistic child is hard, try being a divorced one from a culture that is not too kind on divorcees (Indian) =) Alhamdulillah though, I am so thankful for and proud of my two princesses. My 4 year old Maryam is just my rock, which is ajeeb to say the least, to be said of a 4 year old. But truthfully, they are the ones that keep me going, keep me challenging myself. Sorry it took me so long to write back. I hope you and your family are doing well.
PS. How hard was potty training Khalid?