Autism and Christmas (VIDEO)
For the first six years of my son’s life he didn’t care at all about Christmas. He didn’t care about the presents, or the tree, or Santa.
He didn’t care about celebrating with our family, or traditions, or preparing for the holiday.
It was so hard on our family. And as he got older, it got harder.
There was no making a Christmas list, attending church, baking cookies, visiting Santa or even going to dinner at Grandma’s house.
Not only did he not understand, he detested opening gifts, the music, the people in our home, the lights, and so on.
I am excited to tell you that it’s starting to get better. Cooper is now eight. And for the first time ever, he really, truly cares and is excited for the holiday.
He asks me EVERY DAY (nonverbally of course) about Santa. He points to the tree and asks me to plug the lights in. He loves the decorations.
He wants Santa to visit our house. He can’t wait to celebrate with our family.
I want to give you hope while acknowledging how truly hard it was for six years.
Something so simple, the magic of Christmas, was lost in our house. It was crushing. But it’s getting better.
We never gave up hoping that he would join our family for the holiday.
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Finding Cooper’s Voice is a safe, humorous, caring and honest place where you can celebrate the unique challenges of parenting a special needs child. Because you’re never alone in the struggles you face. And once you find your people, your allies, your village….all the challenges and struggles will seem just a little bit easier. Welcome to our journey. You can also follow us on Facebook and subscribe to our newsletter.
