Maybe Justin’s been right all along. He normally has a social skills group once a week and occupational therapy every other week, and he’s always asking when he can stop doing those things, and I never really have an answer. But due to various circumstances, he hasn’t done any of it since March…and he’s been fine. I even witnessed him compromising with a friend the other day without getting upset or needing any intervention. Amazing.

It really is amazing when you think about how far he’s come. I was re-reading his Asperger’s diagnosis report the other day, which was done when he was five, and which noted that his processing speed seemed to be way below average. Compare that to the academic testing he went through a couple months ago, in which he proved to be gifted in 9 out of 13 areas, including processing speed. Four years ago he was paralyzed by anxiety and in a near-constant state of meltdown; since then he’s had so much help and support that his true nature has been allowed to come through.

On the other hand, he did flip out the other day when I announced I’d booked a surprise trip to Disneyland (we leave in 12 days — yay!) He insisted he didn’t want to go, that he would stay here with his grandparents instead, and that he didn’t want to miss out on three days of school. After a couple days of listening to his whining, I sat him down and calmly asked him the obvious question: “Don’t you think that three days at Disneyland would be more fun than three days at school?” He thought about it for a second, and it was like it finally dawned on him that he was actually going to have a good time. The things you don’t think you need to explain (sigh).