One by one by one, all three of my children were diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. Little by little by little, my husband and I learned what that meant for our children, for our family, and for ourselves. As we learned about autism, we also learned about the dangers our children would face out in the world. We learned that many people viewed our children as being disposable. We learned that we would have to fight to provide our children with quality of life in the present and that we would also need to fight for their rights to have a future. We did not learn, until it was almost too late, that the danger had already begun, that it was present in our home, and that we would wage the fight of our lives across our dining room table.

Discovering Autism: I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know how to help my children overcome their developmental delays. I tried to navigate the early intervention programs, but they couldn’t, or wouldn’t, tell me what was wrong. Then, one night my husband’s grandmother intervened. I thought discovering the reason for my children’s delays would be the end of our battle, but discovering autism was just the beginning of our war.

Discovering Neurodiversity: The doctor told us our son would never speak, never play pretend, and never attend school with his peers. He said our son belonged in an institution. I thought that was the biggest threat we’d face, but I was wrong. We learned how to get the help our children needed, but that help came with a price. Could I save my family? Could I become the advocate my children need me to be?

Stephanie Allen Crist is the mother of three children with diagnoses of autism. Stephanie advocates for the rights of people with disabilities to participate as full members of our diverse societies. Learn more at www.StephanieAllenCrist.com.