Sound Off: Special Needs Asks Mom, “Why are you sad?”

My husband, Jim, asked, “Do you really want to step into a ‘Sound-off’ about this?” I replied, “I can’t help it! I am trying not to judge! But I worry that this story will be swept under the rug and nothing will be done to help parents and children of special needs!”

As my husband and I began our, “discussion,” a nice word that happily married people use while they debate issues, our son, Wyatt, spun around the room. He was downloading his day at summer camp. This ritual is a mix of stimming and scripting. These terms are very familiar to parents of special needs children. We often think that when he is in this haze that he is not paying attention. The truth is that he doesn’t miss a beat.

In the mean time, my husband finally agrees to video tape my “sound off.” He tapes it and then decides he needs a break. He goes off to take a shower.

Wyatt then asks, “Mom, can I video tape you?” I agree and he asks…”Why are you sad?” Somehow it just seemed serendipitous that he asked me about the issue.

The first clip shows Wyatt’s interview of me. The second clip is the first one we taped by my husband. Third is Wyatt’s song of hope.