Autistic Days Versus Normal Days

I’d like to preface this post by saying that my child, like any other child with Autism, has Autism everyday.  Autism is not a disease that can be treated until it is gone.  Autism is a disorder, it will always be there, but we strive to treat the symptoms.  However, Josie has what I refer to as “Autistic Days” and “Normal Days”.  She also has days that are somewhere in between.


On a “Normal Day”,  Josie is like any other 2 year old in her behaviour.  She is interactive, plays, you can engage her in activities, she babbles up a storm.  She has minimal temper tantrums, and it is always easy to see why she is having them.  For example, she gets mad that she cannot do something she wants to do, is frustrated that a game isn’t working the way she thought, or wants attention but I’m busy making dinner.  Normal tantrums that any other toddler may have.  She eats well, sleeps well, usually naps, plays with her sister and I, and seems very happy.

On an “Autistic Day”, Josie is…  well, very nearly unbearable.  Usually, my first sign that it’s going to be one of these days is that she refuses to eat breakfast.  She will continue the entire day either eating nothing, or nearly nothing.  She has meltdowns over nothing discernable.  She can continue these meltdowns for an hour straight.  When she’s not having a full on meltdown, she will either still be whining and crying, or having a smaller tantrum.  She is withdrawn, and cannot be engaged.  She will occasionally act as though she wants to be cuddled, but as soon as you touch her, she pushes you away.  She stops talking and communicating nearly completely.  She doesn’t nap, doesn’t play, and has to be left alone.  

On an “In Between Day”, she will alternate between withdrawn and social, will eat a very limited amount of things (but at least still eats), will have a meltdown or two and a number of tantrums (some of which can be figured out, others not),  may or may not nap, may or may not want cuddles and affection.  These days are the hardest to gauge, you never know at any given moment how she will be.

On all of these days, some of her traits are still evident.  No matter what sort of day she has, her rubber ducky must come with us everywhere.  Depending on the day, it may never leave her side, or, she may be fine so long as it’s somewhere nearby.  She has an obsession with unique non-toy objects, for example, spoons, coins, bolts, etc.  She stims.  Some days are better than others, but all days are unique.  Our life is never boring!