I called 2 agencies this week to find PCAs (personal care attendants) to help with my disabled son in my home. The first one I called asked for basic information to pass along to the nurse so that she could call me back. She asked his name, birthdate, etc, and then finally asked, "what is wrong with your son?" I sat there in stunned silence for minute and then replied, "Do you mean what is his diagnosis?" There is nothing "wrong" with my son. He is different than most kids. He is disabled in many areas. Life is hard for him and our whole family. But there is nothing "wrong" with him. I don't consider myself to be easily offended. If someone off of the street asked me what was "wrong" with Daniel, I would not get upset. But I was shocked that an agency that deals exclusively with disabled adults and children would say something like that to me.
So for the record....I do not have an "autistic child". I have a child with autism. He is a child first, like any other child; and he happens to have autism, but there is more to him than that. He is disabled in many areas. But there is nothing "wrong" with him.
By the way....I am going with the second agency that I called.
1 comment:
I also do not like the term "hearing impaired" when referring to my girls, and always very delicately correct it to "they are hard of hearing". Impaired is just such a downer word, you know?
My nephew Jacob is so much like Daniel. His official diagnosis is "Agenesis of the Corpus Collusum" not autism. I work at a PCA for him about two days a week.
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