April 6, 2024, started like any typical spring morning, but the events that unfolded over the course of that day will stay with me forever. It had been a year and a half since I split from my ex-partner and, outside of work, my life revolved around my three children, including my two youngest, John, 5, and Ayda, 3. Around this time, Ayda's nursery had told me she was showing signs of autism.
Getting an official diagnosis takes time. I had already begun the process. She had seen a health visitor, attended a speech and language group, and was getting help wherever I could find it.
Yet for all the organizations and experts I spoke to, not one mentioned autism elopement. Autism elopement happens when an autistic child leaves a safe or supervised area without permission. Studies have shown that 49 percent of autistic children will try to elope or wander away from safe environments after the age of four.
These children have little or no awareness of danger. They can be non-verbal and may not respond to their names, even if you scream them. Autism elopement can have dire consequences for everyone involved, as I was soon to find out.
That morning, I had taken Ayda to the park while John stayed with my mom. A couple of hours later, we swapped and I took John to a local safari park while my mom stayed with Ayda at the local park. I was out with John when I got a call from my neighbor.
She was frantic, telling me: "Alex, you need to come home now. Ayda's in trouble." "I don't know," she said. "There's an ambulance and the police here." I scooped up John and jumped straight into the car to go home.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
