> I didn't understand what flapping was Right! I'm assuming everyone knows what flapping is, but it's not obvious! It's literally flapping your hands in ...

> I didn't understand what flapping was Right! I'm assuming everyone knows what flapping is, but it's not obvious! It's literally flapping your hands in ... anticipation? excitement? sensory overload? I don't know, but I think my son does. > Please ... consider what "normal" means and what its worth might be. Yes, I put "normal" in quotes for a reason as I don't particularly care too much about "normal." For me and my son "happy" is more important than normal for the most part. But, there is a huge issue. I chose to have children later in life (I'm 43 right now and my son is 3). So there is pressure on me and my family to make sure that whatever happens that my son is cared for and kept happy. I can't guarantee that I can ensure he's financially taken care of after I'm gone. I hope that issue is far down the road and I hope it won't be an issue, but what if it is? Do I work on helping him to become "normal"? Or do I hope that I can provide for him no matter what? So do I make the decision at all costs to make sure he's provided for by becoming "normal" or do I dash that to the wind and hope I make enough money to provide for him when I'm gone, but keep him happy? There is a good reason to making sure that he can be productive in society at the cost of losing himself (if that's possible, no one knows that it is) vs. keeping who he is at all costs. Does that make sense? I hope it's clear that I love him for who he is no matter what, but that I want to make sure that he has a "good" life for the rest of his life. Hopefully this is all moot as he's doing very well with speech therapy and occupational therapy.