A New Start at Cornerstone Autism Center

A lot has happened in a short amount of time. Last week Jenni called Cornerstone Autism Center (one of MANY options we’ve been looking at for ABA Therapy in Indiana) to let them know we had decided we would like Desmond to stay in a traditional daycare setting with neurotypical peers for as long as possible. This meant finding a provider that had therapists go on site, rather than having Desmond attend a full day center.

The next day they called back. “Guess what?!” they said. “We fought the insurance and got Desmond approved for a full 35 hours a week!”

!!!

Crunch time. Now there was a decision to make. Should we keep Desmond in daycare with 20 hours of ABA therapy a week in a daycare environment, or should we try Cornerstone full time, giving him a full 7 hours a day of therapy?

Hardest. Decision. Ever.

In the end we decided to try Cornerstone. Desi started there yesterday. Today is his second day.

Honestly, I still have conflicted feelings about it. I loved that Desmond was around neurotypical peers while at daycare, but I also love the fact that he’s getting the individualized attention he needs now full time. Jenni and I saw SO MUCH improvement from a mere 20 hours of therapy a week out in Redmond. I am beyond hopeful that 35 hours a week will jumpstart his skills and lead him to a path to success. It’s also pretty nice not having that extra $1,000 of daycare costs every month. Whew! We also don’t have to tell insurance, “Yeah, we know you approved Desmond for 35 hours, but we’re going to go with this 20 hour option instead…”

Really, it all comes down to what is best for Desmond. While that is up for debate, Jenni and I try our best to make the right decisions. Cornerstone is new, and we’ll give it everything we have. If we see it’s not working out, we’ll pivot. All we can do is try. And hope. And try MORE.

I think the hardest aspect about it for me is the fact that this is the first time I’ve ever felt like Desi is truly different. That might seem silly, because there is nobody like Desi, but before this point (at least in my view) he’s lived the same life any other kid his age would live. Sure, he sees the world differently and has had some extra therapies thrown in, but there’s just something different about dropping him off at a specialized center instead of a typical daycare that makes me feel so… sad. Even if I know that it’s what is best. And even though I’m excited, and hopeful, there’s a little sadness there too.

I guess everything can’t be sunshine and giggles.

Being a parent is hard. I would say that being a parent of a child with ASD is harder, but honestly I don’t have anything to compare it to so I don’t really know. We’ll just keep at it. Never give up. Never surrender.