We are exhausted.
My husband and I have spent months trying to get our autistic son the education he deserves.
What we’ve been met with?
Rejection. Red tape. Silence. And now, nowhere left to turn.
Our son is four.
He’s non-verbal.
He has moderate to severe autism, ADHD, sensory processing disorder, and a language processing disorder.
He elopes. He requires close monitoring—for his safety.
He is not “a challenge.” He is a child.
And the systems that are supposed to support him have already failed him.
It started with the classroom.
There were promises: parent training’s, consistent support, clear communication.
We got none of that.
No training’s.
No collaboration.
Just surface-level responses like:
“He had a good day.”
“He had a rough day.”
“He’s doing fine.”
Meanwhile, at home, we were drowning.
Trying to figure out why he wasn’t making progress.
Why everything felt stuck.
Wondering if we were the problem.
We weren’t.
Behind the scenes, without telling us—they stopped potty training.
They stopped helping him engage.
They strapped him into a high chair every day, gave up on trying, and told us nothing.
They let us carry the guilt for their neglect.
We tried to find a better option.
We reached out to another district—one known for stronger special education programs.
We followed every direction, submitted all documentation, asked for guidance on placement.
And what did we get?
Weeks of waiting.
Unanswered emails.
Conflicting responses.
No clear direction.
Just delay after delay after delay.
Now school starts in days.
And because they dragged their feet and never gave a real answer, we’re out of time.
Our only option now?
Send our son back to the same classroom that failed him in the first place.
And we won’t do it.
We can’t knowingly put him back into a place where his needs were ignored.
Our son is not broken.
He is not disposable.
He is not “too much.”
He is autistic. He is disabled. He is bright. He is loved.
And he deserves a school that gives a damn.
If you’ve ever been pushed aside, blamed, or punished for advocating for your disabled child—
If you’ve ever sat in silence while a system ignored your kid—
I want to hear your story.
You are not alone.
We were #DeniedBeforeDayOne—and we’re done staying quiet.
We’re not just sharing our story.
We’re building a space for every story like this—because ours isn’t the only one.You can follow along, submit your story, and learn more at:
DeniedBeforeDayOne.blogThey refused to listen behind closed doors. So we opened a door for everyone else.
Denied Before Day One 
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