May 20, 2006 I was blessed with an early but beautiful daughter who I named Ahijah. My sister became my nannie and life was getting back to normal. From the beginning she struggled sleeping at night. Because she spent so much time in the beginning of her life in the neonatal ward, I was advised to have some music lights on for her to fall asleep to create a familiar environment. Things seemed normal and she began to grow as any baby would.
At 3 Ahijah was still not speaking, she was pointing at objects that she wanted. She would scream whenever loud noises or voices (talking or laughter) were in ear shy. At 4 she started twirling, echoing and the most challenging for us head butting. The triggers were all different, but the reaction of running into a wall, sitting on the floor and banging her head or running into me (head first) was the same. My sister concerned for her niece encouraged me to see pass my denial and seek professional assistance. I will always be grateful to her for saying what others would dance around, “Nicole there is something wrong, but you are not alone!” Ahijah was diagnosed with autism when she was 4.
Ahijah still has a hard time with some social skills and can be very emotional. Often extremely sensitive to others she does not pick up on social cues, thus she is not a defender of herself but of others. Ahijah has a passion for art, music, singing and dancing. She loves using the laptop and her iPad she is very loving. As a single mom I try very hard to create an environment of consistency. My family could never imagine our lives without this very special little girl; she is a burst of sunshine. Have faith, and don’t live in denial.
Las Vegas, NV
