Is this a nightmare? My twins were diagnosed with autism

On 15th of May 2017, my twins, Natalia and Natasha turned three years. Three years of Gods faithfulness on so many levels. It hasn’t been a walk in the park, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I was only 22, just completed campus, awaiting graduation; when I found out I was expectant.

Young as I was, I had always wanted a baby of my own and when this came, I was very excited and would flash the news to whoever cared to listen. Safe for the extreme ‘morning sickness’; I was nauseated 24/7 for the first three months.

I would throw up every time the smell of fried food hit my nostrils. I survived on boiled rice and fruits but I was ok until I found out I was expecting twins. I was half excited, half anxious. Mixed feelings the whole way.

Being a first-time mom and having twins isn’t easy. But that’s not the worst; we experienced delayed milestones on every level. Eyebrows were raised left right and center over their delays but with time we would hit the milestone, each at their own time and I found consolation in the knowledge that all kids develop at their own pace.

About two weeks ago I decided to take them to school. I had all the good intentions of getting them out there to interact with other kids to see if they could acquire speech a little faster. They had delayed on this and could only utter one word, but then again, the fact that they could hear completely left me with very little worries about their speech.

On the 8th of May 2017, I, excited as any new parent on their child's first day at school, took them to school. We were well received but after listening to my vivid description of the kids and after observing them for a while, the Sister was a bit skeptical about admitting them.

She suggested that I should take the kids for assessment. Lots of questions were running through my mind: Ok assessment for what??? Is it some sort of interview?? Do all new babies joining school go for assessment?

 How are they going to do the assessment and they can't read, write or talk???  Apparently, I was supposed to take the twins to an education assessment center where they would be assessed if they were ready for school or not.

On Tuesday, we woke up very early in the morning and headed out for the assessment. So, we walk into the assessment office and... long story short, my twins are diagnosed with Autism... Yes, autism. And this was the first time I was hearing this word at such a close range.

So yeah, I have been raising a set of special kids all that time without my knowledge. It’s not one of the easiest diagnosis to take. It’s not like they got malaria or a flu which will clear in five days, they have autism!!!!!

We are going to live with this nightmare our whole lives unless God miraculously comes through and takes it away. But one thing remains, my love for these little angels, because I am their mother. I am going to dedicate my life to giving them the best I can and we will ace through.

Fortunately, I have received a lot of support from friends neighbors and family; some even going the extra mile to get information for me, and for that, I am forever grateful. Any support goes a long way because, this is no easy task, but again, only a special mama can raise a special child. It is well, it can only get better!!!