a little....

communication would be nice!  i just can't understand how a parent can *forget* to tell the other parent about their child's medical condition.  as some of you know, my boyz recently visited from MI.  my middle boy has always had some *social* issues.  we had chalked it up to the fact that he was a very late bloomer with his language development.  in fact, he went to a specialized public school until the 5th grade so that he could be taught all day by a teacher who was also a speech therapist.  by the time he reached 6th grade, his communication & language skills had progressed tremendously. regardless of his progress, though, i have always noticed considerable *quirky* behaviors.

during this recent visit, his *quirky* behaviors really stood out, and he displayed what i consider to be very unhealthy anger issues.  so i sent his dad an email explaining my concerns about his development, what i had noticed about his anger issues, and suggested that we talk to come up with a plan as to help him [he's 14 yrs. old, starting the 8th grade, and has very few, if any, friends].

imagine my surprise when the ex replied with: "yeah, nick's been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder."  what?  geez, thanks for f*@#ing telling me.... unbelievable.  would have been nice to be informed of what the hell is going on with my son.  and as if that isn't bad enough, i asked his older brother [privately, of course] if he understood why his little brother *acted* the way he did.  his initial response was "yeah, he's just being a jerk."  when i told him that his lil' bro has been diagnosed with autism, his whole demeanor changed..... he had NO flippin  idea.  so not only does dad neglect to inform me, he can't even be bothered to explain it to nick's brothers so that maybe, just maybe, they could begin to understand that nick is a little different, and to be a little bit more tolerable.....  

i'll be contacting his school tomorrow and will be asking for a copy of his IEP and psychological report that was completed when he was first assessed.  from there i'll discuss the info with my dear friend at school who works with autistic children, and see what i can suggest to dad.  getting *support* from school, as he puts it, isn't enough.  i think he needs to see someone who can help him to understand what's going on in his head [ya know, i bet nick doesn't even know there's something *different* about him].....go figure.....

i just don't get some people.......