Why Am I Calling My Son Ben?

I made the decision to give my family different names for this blog for a few reasons.  First, I am telling my son's story from my point of view, but it is and will always be his story to tell.  I think that others can benefit from hearing about our experiences, but I believe that his privacy comes first.  When the time comes when he is ready to share his experiences, I will let him make that call.  Second, the more I dig into the world of autism the more I realize how divided the community is on so many issues.  I know that no matter how I feel on a particular subject, there will be others who have a radically different view based on their own unique experiences.  On this blog I will always make it clear that I speak for myself alone, and that each person has a unique perspective to share.  I will always respect the opinions of others, and I hope that this blog can be a forum for a friendly exchange of ideas and support.  And, in case you were curious, I chose to call myself Jessica because this was the name my parents almost gave me, while the name Ben was the back-up name we had for our son.  I'm calling my husband Nick in homage to Ben's favorite author, Nick Bruel, who writes the Bad Kitty books.  Look for a post about this coming soon!