In the Beginning

Haiden's first year of life was pretty crazy. He was always sick (ear infections, colds), didn't sleep well, and had several bowel issues. As a new, single mom I did what the doctors told me, I trusted them. Physically, Haiden was meeting all of his milestones. At about 12 months of age he had 3 words (mama, bye, and bob which meant bottle). I thought he was doing great. At about 13 months Haiden seemed to slip away from me. He didn't respond to my voice on a consistent basis, he wanted to play with the same toys over and over again, his babbling seemed to stop, and he cried a lot. He continued to always be sick, had poor sleep patterns, and constant belly trouble. When I confronted his doctor about my concerns I was told, "most children have 12-13 colds in their first year of life, we'll treat him with antibiotics for 12 weeks before we decide if he needs tubes in his ears, here is a prescription for a laxative to help with his bowel problems, and most boys are late talkers." Again, he was the doctor, I trusted him. During this period I had a horrible feeling in my stomach that something wasn't right. Over and over I pushed that feeling aside, trying to ignore it. Now I know what that was. It is the greatest gift God gave a woman, it is my instinct.