Journal_1_more_prognosis

A comment has been made through my e-mail asking for more clarification on Isaac's prognosis.

When I took Isaac to see Dr's. Ed Riley and Sarah Mattson at the Center for Behavioral Teratology, they did a 5 day series of tests which were:

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - third edition (WISC - III)
Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test - Revised (PPVT - R)
Boston Naming Test
California Verbal Learning Test - Children's Version (CVLT - C)
Grooved Pegboard Test
Wide Range Achievement Test - third edition (WRAT - 3)
Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI)
Controlled Oral Word Association Test (Letter and Category)
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test
Trail Making Test
Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning (WRAML)
Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)

Isaac scored in the Well Below Average on all tests except for the Boston Naming Test in which he scored Average.

In the Research Summary, the following was written:

Unfortunately, even in the context of a loving and stimulating home environment, his general level of functioning is very low. Isaac will likely need a supportive living situation throughout his life. His level of disability is substantial and his capacity to complete even the simplest task without supervision is minimal.

All of this may sound very dismal to the average person but I have come to accept it. There is no amount of behavioral modification that will change my son into a *normal person.* He is not normal and never will be. My interpretation on this is that he IS. I suppose I could sit around and wish that it wasn't happening to me and that I had a *normal child* and that I can't do this anymore because it's just too hard but that's not what kind of person I am. These are the facts of mine and my son's life and I have learned to cope and deal with them in the best ways possible. I accept the fact that he will always be dependent on me or another for his every need. It is the acceptance of these facts that keep me going and looking for new avenues to try. Every day is a challenge and an eye opening experience for us. There is beauty, mystery and happiness in living life one day at a time.