The Brookston Family Blog

Today we saw Dr. Errante, a local specialist in Autism Specturm Disorders who we were referred to by Porter's pediatrician. What led us to do this started almost two years before, when Porter was only a year old. Porter's speech development was delayed and although it was cause for some worry by us, doctors, friends and family all assured us that it was not unusual for children to start talking according to their own internal clock. So we waited. And waited. Over the next two years, the number of words he used and understood grew in fits and starts and he seemed always on the verge of talking. But time and time again, he'd stall and not take that leap into the world of sentences and communication, which became a continual source of frustration. As Porter's third birthday approached, we started noticing other behaviors which were not evident in his friends at pre-school. He seemed strangely isolated with his peers and even a little lonely despite being a happy toddler. He had difficulty making eye contact and joining in to play at school although he certainly seemed to enjoy school itself. Eventually prompted by family and our own reading, we started looking into autism. And the more we learned, the more Porter fit the profile. We met with our pediatrician and she thought that there were enough indicators to justify taking our inquiry to the next level, which is what led us to Dr. Errante. Anyway, after a few hours observing Porter at play and talking with us, his conclusion was that Porter did indeed have one of the Autism Spectrum Disorders.