The Story of my Teenage Son, His Autism and the Consequences of Getting Involved with an Abuser
My son is nearly 17 years old. Up until about 4 months ago- I took care of all his needs. I’m a single mom. A single mom who has, over the years, sacrificed my own health in favor of keeping financial stability as much as possible and always putting my kids first.
My son has autism. Sure, it’s a spectrum. When he was diagnosed- it had been clear as day that something was different about him. He didn’t speak. He communicated through pointing, gestures and tantrums. He beat me up pretty regularly as a toddler and preschooler. Usually I think he would do that out of frustration. It was hard not to take it personally.
My son didn’t speak a word until age 6. Before that- I had to be his full time case manager and mother too. He has a father. A father who repeatedly refused to help me in any way. The only time the father would help was to take our son on weekends. So I would work double shifts Saturday and Sunday to pay the bills. I was so exhausted…sometimes I actually fell asleep just sitting at a table.
His appointments and treatment were so in depth and time consuming- I actually wasn’t even able to get him to all of them. Mostly because he was exhausted by the end of each day of autism treatment, speech therapy, occupational therapy and my attempts to make his life somewhat better by attempting to treat him not just as a patient but as my child.
Since I am a registered nurse- I was able to live modestly and provide my son with entertainment. I never imagined the eventual cost would be a severe decline in my own health.
Every year, I bought season passes to Valleyfair- a nearby amusement park with all the roller coasters and rides one could imagine. I took him there at least once a week. I also took him swimming regularly and took him on play dates. Usually with other kids who had some sort of developmental issue. I’m enrolled him in swimming classes and when those people couldn’t handle his violent behavior- I took it upon myself to teach him to swim.
He had medical needs that resulted from his autism. He was very picky about what he would eat. I could count on one hand the foods he would eat. Taking him to a doctor or dentist was always guaranteed to end up with me being physically assaulted but I couldn’t very well not take care of him. Brushing his teeth was a nightmare. I would have to sit on top of him and hold him down to brush his teeth. Every day.
He did not like to defecate for some reason. So I had to keep track of this also. Surely- he had some dehydration that didn’t help and his diet was not exactly rich in fiber. At times, I would have to give him an enema or even take him to the emergency room because he wouldn’t have bowel movements.
I also volunteered frequently as soon as he was in kindergarten. I would come in a couple times each week to help school staff. The first elementary school he went to was not following his needs. Plus he was being physically bullied by other kids. I tried first to resolve the problem with the school but they were not cooperative. I was outright told “we don’t have the staff to accommodate your son”.
I had to pull him out of school. This ended up happening several times over the years.
However, on this particular occasion, I had been in an intimate relationship- partly out of desperation for help with my son. Okay, most out of desperation. The man I was dating and living with- claimed that he would help me. He sort of did I guess but it ended up not being worth it since it turned out that I was clearly vulnerable to unsavory characters and my desperation was so potent, I think I maybe even excreted it as a scent.
The person I had become involved with was abusive in a way I didn’t understand or recognize for some months. He mostly put me down subtly, criticized nearly everything I did, isolated me from my friends and family, and often told me things that were designed to create self doubt. Yes, he did physically assault me on one occasion. There was no mistaking being thrown to the ground during an argument. After he did that, he knew he had gone too far because I locked myself in the bathroom for hours after that and told him to leave.
He did not repeat that physical assault. He did, however, continue and increase his verbal abuse. All this occurred within the first 6-9 months of dating him. At about the 6 month mark- I began to seriously consider ending the relationship. But I was mixed up emotionally and mentally. He had successfully broken me down to some degree. I am sometimes conflict avoidant and that didn’t help the situation.
I ended up thinking “okay maybe couples therapy will help” and also “but my son has become attached to this guy”. I asked my son if he liked the guy and my son said he did. I think if my son had been honest with me then, I would have certainly broken it off. But since I thought my son liked the guy and my son had had such a rough time with his life, I decided to propose couples therapy rather than simply having the guy move out.
Couples therapy confirmed my instincts that there was no way the relationship could work. The guy (I hesitate to refer to him as a man since he behaves like a small child) blamed me for absolutely everything and had no interest in improving communication, being cooperative with me or admitting any sort of fault on his part. The therapist even pulled me aside after a few sessions and told me that the guy was abusive and couples therapy simply doesn’t work when one party is abusive.
I was depressed at this time. Functional still but depressed. I avoided the guy as much as possible. I had him sleep in another room and stayed away from home as much as I could. In retrospect, this must have been very stressful for my son.
During this time, I became pregnant and had a miscarriage in the early stages. The “father” told me and everyone he knew- including my family members (in secret) that I had imagined the pregnancy. I was not aware of his telling people that I was basically hallucinating and very mentally unstable until much later. I was shocked that he could deny that I had been pregnant. This contributed quite a bit to my feelings of hopelessness and anxiety. I eventually talked myself into a psych unit despite not being suicidal or otherwise unbalanced. Aside from my anxiety and depression, that is. I went there to escape the boyfriend. I was also stressed out at my job. And mourning the loss of the pregnancy. I blamed myself, of course.
Things started to become unbearable when I became pregnant again and this guy tried everything in the book to get me to have an abortion. He pressured me. He tried to get me to drink and take drugs. He harassed me at all hours. I briefly harbored some belief that given the pregnancy- and facing being a single mom again with one child who had complex developmental needs and a second baby with a man who treated me horribly- that maybe things could miraculously change.
That belief was crushed within weeks. He became more cruel. He would make messes and refuse to acknowledge or clean them up. He insulted me all the time. He yelled at me often. He called me names. He continued to tell others (and me) that I was very mentally unstable.
The peak of this nightmare was when this guy realized that I didn’t want to have an abortion and no amount of pressure would change that. So he increased his efforts in portraying me as so mentally unstable that I shouldn’t be outside of a psychiatric unit. I also had finally realized that I was having this baby alone and could no longer tolerate this guys presence.
I told him that if things didn’t change immediately- I would end the relationship and he should leave my home. His response was to carefully plan to have me psychiatrically committed. He visited therapists to find out how to make that happen and he got his information. Information he would be using very shortly.
One night, after only a little more than a year into this relationship, I told him to get out of my home and leave me alone. He said that I was mentally unstable and that he would have me put in a psychiatric unit if I broke up with him. I said “whatever- just get out and hand over the keys”. My son did not witness this interaction but he did witness the act of abuse that followed about a half hour later.
This guy followed through on his threat. He called the police and told them I was pregnant, “off my medications”, suicidal, bipolar and a threat to myself and others. At this time, I didn’t know about police “welfare checks”. I had never had that happen before. So when two police officers showed up at my door, I told them I had done nothing and wanted to go to bed. It was nearly 10 at night and I was exhausted. The police refused to leave and barged into my home against my will.
My son woke up and witnessed me crying out of frustration and confusion and two police officers barraging me with personal questions about my health and also implying that I was insane. It took me a few minutes to figure out what had happened. I first had to calm down and speak to the officers with logic. I told them what had happened. How my now ex boyfriend had threatened to have me put in a psych unit if I broke up with him. I confirmed that I was not unstable in any way nor was I neglecting my mental health. Also, I don’t have bipolar disorder.
The male police officer immediately realized what was going on. He even told me that this was a common type of abuse. He advised that I get in touch with the domestic violence center and probably file for a restraining order. The police left, as there was clearly no emergency here, but my son was terrified.
Seeing the terror and trauma in my son was what it took for me to end any sort of relationship with the father of my unborn child. I spent months debating whether to keep the baby or not. And I ended up absolutely having to get a harassment restraining order since the guy made it his mission in life to stalk me, harass me, harass my family members, make false accusations against me that I was abusing my son, and he even tried to file for his own restraining order. That was denied as I had no desire to interact with him, let alone harass him.
In writing this, I think about how worried my son must have been. I ended up deciding that I wasn’t going to let this guy make my decision for me about keeping the baby but the pregnancy was fraught with complications from the beginning. Complications that I am certain are a result of my anxiety and fear of that guy. And profound guilt. Guilt for what I had put my son through and guilt for being selfish enough to decide to keep the baby.
I don’t think my son ever forgave me for that whole experience. And it did not end with the restraining order. The father immediately filed for custody. So after having my daughter a month early, I got no rest. I had to spend most of my time caring for her, trying to pay some attention to my son and fighting a losing legal battle that dragged on for about two years.
I realized that I was not being a good parent to my son when I found out that he had had a minor injury and I hadn’t noticed for maybe a week. And my poor son who felt bad for me, he didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to burden me. This attitude of my son to worry about me and not burden me with his own issues continued for years. Because the abuse from the father did not stop when the court battle was over. The guy continued to neglect the baby, insult me outright and continue to threaten me regularly. But there was nothing to be done I had thought at the time. That was probably my trauma thinking for me.
Emotionally, I withdrew from most people for years after this. I went through the motions of life but I felt like I had nothing left but terror and anxiety. I was also desiring an escape from this life. I became suicidal. Or had suicidal thoughts and even plans.
My son was aware of this. It was difficult to hide my depression. I wasn’t coping very well. I was still so traumatized. My life was in tatters. I had left my job, stopped socializing entirely, and slept every chance I had. I went through the motions of being a parent but I was so exhausted and terrified that I was unable to give more. I couldn’t give much to myself. I was existing on fumes alone.
The problems and abuse from the father of my daughter continued for years. The stress of his actions towards my son’s sister and me was inescapable. I tried to hide my depression but I’ve never been that great at faking emotions.
My son withdrew more and more from me and his sister. I now realize how hard all this must have been for him. How hard it probably still is.
I eventually became intolerant of being abused in any way and it took several years, but I stopped caring about the behavior of my ex. However, by that time, I believe that my son had drifted too far away from me and his father blamed me for the entire abuse situation. And was vocal about it. I believe my son began to resent me due to my trauma, my post traumatic stress issues and sibling rivalry.
My son didn’t really understand how it would be to share his mom after nearly 8 years of having me to himself. He didn’t know what a baby was like, how much work they are. And he shouldn’t have had to know what it’s like to worry about his sister weekly when she would return to her abusive father. The guy didn’t stop at abusing me. He abuses our daughter too.
During all this, my son was experiencing becoming a teenager. He does not do well with change. He also had to change schools. First into high school, where things were not so bad at first, but once again he was physically assaulted. This time for being Jewish. Not only was he assaulted, but also threatened with further violence should he speak up.
The school didn’t handle the assault with any sort of seriousness. I also found out that my son was not getting any of the autism services that he still needed. After weeks of trying to work with the school, I realized that he couldn’t go back there. It was dangerous.
My son became very depressed at this time. It was just too much for him. He blamed me, himself, maybe others too but he hasn’t been able to move past that assault. Two years ago.
When I pulled him out of that terrible school, I learned that he was seriously behind in English. He was functioning way below grade level. I first tried homeschooling him but realized soon that he needed the structure of school to thrive and hopefully heal. So I put all my energy into finding a new school. In the middle of the year. And only a month after I was hit by a full sized semi truck and permanently injured. It was a lot to deal with. For all of us.
My son’s resentment towards me seemed to grow as I had to adopt a more disciplined approach to help him catch up in English and try to find him emotional support. I eventually learned that he blamed me entirely for what happened in his freshman year at that awful school. I suppose blaming me was easier to accept than to blame someone else. I don’t really understand it fully but I am aware that his father has encouraged our son to feel resentment towards me and his sister.
Two years after the hate crime my son experienced, he remains withdrawn from his peers. It is difficult to know what he is feeling or thinking because often, he says things to avoid perceived confrontation.
He has been through alot of hardship. Some of that hardship has been entangled with my experience as I detailed earlier. I tried and tried to repair our relationship but I get the feeling now that it’s too little or too late. For now anyways.
His sister acquired a serious case of head lice about a month ago. All of us ended up having it. I became anxious and fearful of contracting it again. Actually- I don’t think I’ve rid myself of it yet. I have anemia and low blood pressure so blood sucking parasites are particularly bad for me. I have been in the hospital more than once since this started.
My son left for his father’s house and has not returned. He makes almost no contact with me. Before a more recent hospitalization, I thought I was going to die because I couldn’t breathe. I sent my son a message saying something like I love him and he should have my car if I don’t make it. I was so muffled and dizzy, I couldn’t think straight. My heart rate in the ambulance was in the 50s. The highest it got was middle 60s. Even when I was discharged from the hospital.
I had been very disappointed that my son seemed to not care about any of this. It occurred to me that perhaps he needed distance from me. For how long, I have no idea. I told him that I was hurt by his lack of communication and not even checking in to make sure I am alive still. He said he cares but I think he does not. I think he can not care. Caring for me has been too hard for him. I do feel some anger but mostly I am hurting. Hurting from his lack of interest and continued absence. He hasn’t even spoken to me on the phone.
I think he does not want to be in my life or vice versa any longer. That would make sense if he does indeed believe that I am the cause of all his troubles. And I have to accept that there is not much I can do about this. I have tried and failed to support him in recent years. I think it would help if his father did not tell him untrue and negative things about me as a person. However, there is also not much I can do about that either. I can only hope that my son will realize how much I care and all I’ve done for him and that I would never abandon him. But he seems to have abandoned me.
Over the last 17 years of his life, I have questioned myself many times. I have berated myself for not doing enough. For not being enough. For not being able to solve all the problems that have happened.
When his autism was out of control, I often wondered if he would be better off with someone else. But I also knew that nobody else could care and would fight for him like I have. But once again, I find myself thinking if he would be better off with someone else. At this time, I truly do not know. I do know that I’ve neglected my own health to the point that it’s become an emergency. My daughter is only 9 years old and I know I have to attend to my own health if I want to see her into adulthood.
I also want to see my son become independent. That’s what we were working on before he left. Just life skills. Laundry, dishes, time management, anxiety management.
So I absolutely must prioritize my health now. It has deteriorated significantly through the years and it’s clear that I can no longer take care of others if I can’t take care of myself. But it hurts. To realize that I am not in control of my body. My body has told me in no uncertain terms that I cannot go on putting others before myself all the time. My body refuses this now.
I just want my kids to understand that I’m not a bad person. I don’t think I am. But I’ve made some mistakes that were well intentioned. The most significant one being that I thought I could do it all and my health would sort itself out. And how serious the consequences of nearly two decades of medical neglect have had on my body. That is why I really don’t know how much longer I have to live and that concerns me. It causes me to try and tie up loose ends- like trying to record my experiences with my son so that maybe he will one day read this and understand. Just in case my instincts are correct.
To my son, I love you so much and always will.