Puzzle Pieces Together

Autism Awareness Month

The month of April was great! It was the start of better weather, spring break, flowers blooming, and trees growing their leaves back. April was also Autism Awareness month. I happen to be someone who lives with someone on the spectrum. My 11 year old brother was diagnosed with Autism when he was two (I was seven at the time). For anyone who doesn’t know, Autism is a developmental disorder that affects speech and behavior. Since I was so young, I didn’t necessarily understand what this meant. In my mind, he was just different from me but could still live life just as normally as I was. This perception changed tremendously as I’ve gotten older. 

I will say that having an immediate family member who is on the Spectrum has made me appreciate people who have special needs more. It does frustrate/irritate me when kids use Autistic jokes to “insult” people. From around ages 7-12 we rarely ever went places because my brother didn’t like public places at all. My brother would throw a fit especially when he was over stimulated. This was kind of annoying to me because as a kid, I wanted to go places and have fun. Some places he did enjoy going were Chuck-E-Cheese, the movie theater (only to see animated movies of course), and sometimes places to eat. 

A very vivid experience I remember was a trip to Red Robin. Red Robin was my favorite restaurant at the time so, of course, I was excited to go. It was a family outing and I enjoyed seeing my extended family members. There were a lot of people in the restaurant so it was a little noisy. My brother was more than likely extremely overstimulated, so he cried and cried the entire time we were there. The workers tried to cheer him up with a balloon but nothing really seemed to work. As soon as we had left the restaurant, he was fine. This seemed to happen often when we went to grocery stores, malls, and restaurants as well. Even small things like not doing his daily routine in a certain order would set him off. 

A lot of people do not know that Autism comes with a lot more than what is shown in the media. Many people know that they are attracted to water, but a lot of people don’t know that routine is key. During the summer time (as of 2020), my mother likes to take my brother and I to the National Harbor every morning. On days where we would wake up late, he would ask “are we going to walk at the harbor?” When my mom would say not today, he would be disappointed and ask why. He asked the same question every morning as going to the harbor for a walk became a part of his daily routine. When his routines are disrupted, he can react negatively to them. 

When the Coronavirus pandemic first began to surge and we were let out of school for two weeks (which turned into 18 months), we had to get adjusted to seeing our classmates and teachers virtually. As I really enjoyed this change, since it meant I didn’t have to leave my house, my brother absolutely hated this change. The first two weeks, he would cry and ask why we couldn’t go back to school. He would do stuff like close the computer and walk away. Clearly he wanted no parts of virtual learning. As he learned more about the pandemic and understood what was happening around the world, he got more comfortable with being home. 

As we have both gotten older, it has become easier for us to get along because I have learned a lot more patience. I still have to help him with small stuff like opening water bottles and tying his shoes. I don’t mind doing these things because he is developing at a slower pace than what I developed. As a neurotypical child and as a female, I developed way faster than my brother. Since I only have a year left in the house, I want to teach him as much as I possibly can so that he can be as self-dependent as possible (since I feel like he depends on me a lot). I really appreciate how being an older sister to someone on the Spectrum has made me more responsible. There are a lot of older siblings who can get irritated with their siblings very quickly and sometimes blow them off, but I try my best to refrain from doing that. It’s a joy to watch him become more independent and get through days without having meltdowns. As of now, my brother and I have a nice sibling relationship, although there are bumps in the road. Always appreciate your siblings, especially if they need just a little extra attention.