Dedicated to my 3 kids
I am calling myself a strong mother and i want to share my story with you all.
When i see videos and read articles about child abuse i want to cry and ask myself why?
You need to point your children in the right direction so they won't be lost in the future.
My kids made me the woman i am today and i am proud of it.

My oldest son was born in 2002.
I always knew he was special and different from all the other children. But no one believed me and my concerns. People said:"Maybe you need to be more strict, more consequent, set different rules, ignore him.." and the list goes on but it has never helped the main issue. It was hard and he had a rough start into this world. When he was born i had an emergency C Section and his hospital stay afterwards separated me from him.
He is now 7 years old and was just recently diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome.
Unfortunately no one has ever recognized what was wrong with him, even though he has hard times at school and daycare. He could have been diagnosed years ago.
I am happy to know what is wrong with my child, it will help his education and future.
He is my first love, he reminds me of how precious life can be while i get lost in the daily struggle.
My second son was born in 2003.
He is the quiet one. He makes me smile and laugh everyday. He has such a great self esteem and knows how to handle his brothers. He always stands up for them and is a big helper. He knows when i am down and is so concerned about me. He brings the joy into my life when it is dark outside.
My youngest son was born in 2007.
He is a child sent from heaven. A very special child...
There were many signs that my son was not healthy but my prenatal care was poor. I feel guilty sometimes but i have to remind myself that there is nothing i could have done different.
I had special ultrasounds and blood testing and still i did not know if my son would be healthy or not. An abortion has never been an option and an amniocynthese was a high risk at 27 weeks pregnant.
In march 2007 he was born with a Omphalocele and had major surgery right away.
A second time i was not able to hold my child, smell him, connect to him and just have him by my side.
He recovered well in the NICU but month after month, after he was discharged different medical issues developed. He had seizures, low muscle tone, iris colobom, heart defect. And still i did not know what was wrong with him and so did all the doctors not know.
It was very frustrating and such a hard road.
In 2008 i got stationed to Germany as a military dependent. We have continued more evaluation there. More hospital stays, more testing, more worries, more fear, less time for the other 2 children.
After 1 1/2 years my son was finally diagnosed, by a German University, with 1p36 Deletion Syndrome, also called Monosomy 1p36.
It is a rare chromosome defect and even though he was tested 3 times the doctors could not find anything before.
The reason is that only a special test called fish testing needs to be done to detect this kind of chromosome defect.
I was glad to finally have a diagnosis but i was crushed by the prognosis.
We have different therapies a week. He needs supervision 24/7 and is not able to attend a regular daycare.
He is now 2 1/2 years old and can not walk or talk. He has a vision impairment and seizures.
I appreciate all the help i can get in my community.
We are now trying to move back to the states because of the lack of medical support here. It is not easy but i stay strong and fight.
I want people to understand raising a child with a disability is challenging and we should invest more money in prenatal care and genetic testing. We need to help our kids and make sure they have a good education and the same rights.
I love my kids to death, they are the reason i get up and keep going day by day.
I have barely time to myself but i love writing and staying in touch with my wonderful support group on the internet.
We can never give up and be there for our children because they are our future!!!

Thanks for taking your time reading my story!