It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.

Emma is having a really good day today. She is very chatty and happy, and it makes us incredibly joyful.

Last night her left hand swelled up, and I panicked, instantly trying to figure out what kind of neurological disorder can cause swollen limbs. After using “Dr. Google” inappropriately for about 15 minutes, I had convinced myself that there was something terribly wrong. We raced to the doctors and found that she was simply having a mild and localized allergic reaction to some irritant. Important lesson: Sometimes a headache is just a headache, sometimes a swollen hand isn’t the sign of something dire. I need to learn to step back from this “helicopter parent” role, and let Emma be a child.

Yesterday we received the written denial of services from the insurance company. So, today I visited with a wonderful lady at our autism therapy center of choice. She’s helping us formulate a plan to try and appeal the decision to withhold therapy from Emmy. I shared with her some of my concerns for Daniel, knowing that he is going to have a hard time understanding why he and his twin are different. She has a grown child on the autism spectrum, and spoke to me of the profound wonder with which she views him, and how his brother learned to assess whether a person has a good heart by how they treated him. She said that not many people would be brave enough to welcome autism into their lives, but that it was truly a gift to see another side to life, to learn to appreciate and celebrate in a different way. No one would ask for their child to struggle, but accepting that things may be different to how we had imagined, and figuring it out in a way that works for our family is paramount.

All of that goes long way to try and live in the present, and enjoy everything that we have. I know we have shared this sentiment before, but this is the most humbling of anything we have ever experienced.

As we plan for the appeal, we are learning to understand that a diagnosis of autism at 15 months is considered an exercise in probability. We need to show the insurance company that it is more likely than not that Emma’s diagnosis is correct, and that she would be an appropriate candidate for early therapy.

Did you know?:

·         About 10% of children with an autism spectrum disorder have an identifiable genetic, neurological or metabolic disorder.

·         Babies born prematurely or with low birth weight are at greater risk for having an autism spectrum disorder.

·         Breech babies born by cesarean section are at in increased risk for having an autism spectrum disorder.

·         Children of multiple births have a somewhat elevated risk of being diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.

Sound familiar? Little Emmy checks all of those boxes.

The Center for Disease Control (a federal agency) using the slogan “Learn the signs. Act early”, but insurance can pick and choose who to cover. (Under the ACA they will no longer be able to withhold treatment, but our insurance plan was grandfathered in under the old rules).

We are so grateful to have such a fabulous support network. Today’s special thank you is to Caitlin for making us dinner for the last three nights (and promises for tomorrow!) You are all incredibly kind.

Love, the Morgans x 

p.s. In case you're interested, the title is an Edmund Hillary quote. We love it :)