“She is 4 years old.
4 years, 5 weeks. and 1 day.
And she isn’t toilet trained.
When she was 6 months old, she didn’t sit up. Not even at 8 months.
I took her to a specialist. He said, ‘She’s fine, she will do it in her own time.’
And she did.
She didn’t walk until much later. We worried so much but when I took her to a specialist, they said, ‘She will get there. She’s just doing it in her own time.’
She didn’t speak as quickly as her brothers. While they were counting to ten before age 2, she barely spoke.
I took her to a specialist, and she said, ‘She will do it in her own time.’
And she did. She doesn’t shut up.
She hates loud noises. She covers her ears. She frightens easily. She barely plays with other children. She likes her alone time.
She has different traits than her brothers and sisters. She’s met milestones later than them.
She’s different.
But I’ve done nothing different. I’ve loved them all the same.
She’s funny, she’s fierce, she knows what she wants and what she doesn’t. She is creating her own life. She is doing things differently because she is different. She does things in her own way, and in her own time.
She’s somewhere on a spectrum of something and I think that’s why when I watch her, I am in awe. Because she drives me crazy because she’s a force to be reckoned with. I think that’s what I love about her the most. I love that she is so different.
So, today when I was met with a disproving look — one of shock and full of judgment about her not wanting to toilet train, about her stubbornness and fear and when I was given unsolicited advice with judgment — I confidently shook my head and I proudly said, ‘She will do it. In her own time.'”
This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Laura Mazza, where it originally appeared. Follow Laura on Instagram here. Do you have a similar experience? We’d like to hear your important journey. Submit your own story here. Be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories, and YouTube for our best videos.
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