Our Little Water Bug

       In the Fall of 2002, Matthew started attending the Special Needs Preschool. He was 3 years old. Besides going to Preschool everyday, he received Speech Therapy three times a week from the Speech Therapist that he kicked at the evaluation. We were hoping this would help get his speech and language going. I had put Matthew on many waiting lists to get an evaluation. The school said he was just Developmentally Delayed. I continued to suspect more than that. He lined up his toys, flapping his arms with a grimace on his face and lots of crying and screaming. He had trouble transitioning and could not handle crowds, many times we had to leave public events early with him screaming.We got to the point we did not eat at restaurants much. You never knew when something would set him off. Matthew could not tell us what was wrong because of his significant speech delay.
     We learned along the way that Matthew's meltdowns would subside when he was in the bath tub. He would play and smile happily whenever he was in the tub. He loved the water! Summer camps that had swimming in them were a hit to him. Easter Seals had a Day Camp with swim lessons, They taught him how to swim.
    

 Later, when Matthew was diagnosed with autism, one of his therapies for early intervention was Aquatics Therapy with an Occupational Therapist. This therapy was at a Physical Therapy Center. They would do gentle water exercises in the pool and play games. He was very relaxed and happy during the hour long sessions. Soft music was played during the sessions so that added to the relaxation.

     One summer at the Easter Seals Day Camp, Matthew made a strong connection with his Swim Instructor. He started working with Matthew on swimming the length of the pool. He looked forward to swimming at camp and if it was cancelled he was upset. Any camp Matthew does, still to this day, he gets upset if swimming is cancelled.
     Moving forward a few years, in third grade he tried out for an indoor swim team. We saw an article in the newspaper and thought we would give it a try. This was not Special Olympics but a competitive, all year round team. I took him to tryouts and explained to the coach that he had autism. She told me he could give it a try. He struggled a little in the tryouts and I went to help him (I used to be a swimmer :)). The coach told me to go sit down that he would be fine. So I sat and watched, nervous for him. After he was done she came up to me and said that he made the team and that she wanted to work on his strokes. Competitive swimming started for Matthew when he was 9 years old. He is 15 now and still swimming!