With everything in place and my son settled at school, life fell into a routine and my autism education really began. We always had a bond my son and I, but never before had we spent so much time in each others company. Each school morning brought its own mini challenge, perhaps because he had so much trouble sleeping. It was certainly why he was so groggy in the mornings. I would stand by the bed (still do) and after waking him would wait until he got himself out of bed, otherwise he would just lie down and go to sleep again. I discovered that if I got him up at least an hour before ablutions he would be sufficiently awake for school. Children's morning television  programmes were great at sparking his brain into action. It occurred to me that  when he did finally get to sleep his sleep was very deep. I am not sure he knew his own name or who I was on first waking.

I could get him to drink milk in the morning, but he would not eat.About ten minutes before it was time to go to school I would take him to the bathroom and encourage him to sit on the loo, then together (after a fashion) we would wash his hands then clean his teeth. He hated water on his head so he usually went to school with hair akimbo (not a problem in the winter as he wore a hat). For the first few months of starting his new school I would carry him on my shoulders to about one hundred yards from the gates. At first I did this because it was the easiest and most efficient way to get him to the school, but then it became routine. As any parent of an autistic child will tell you it is very hard to break an established routine, especially if the child particularly enjoys the activity. "Why not just tell him to walk?", I hear you say. Trouble was when I tried that he became like a rock and would not move. He would walk about two steps then step in front of me and say, "Carry", and then not move. I would try again and the same thing would happen. I am sure we could have repeated this little dance at least 50 or  60 times but we just did not have the time. I would have to win the battle another day.

 This habit of his, demanding me to carry him on my shoulders, persisted for some time and it also happened at other times. In fact any time we were going to be walking for more than a few minutes I  would sometimes make him walk by saying, "Walk past five lamp posts then I will carry you." Or, "My shoulders really hurt you'll have to let me rest." Eventually after some months I convinced him that growing boys did not get carried everywhere by their fathers. He must have observed that the other children on their father's shoulders  were considerably smaller than him.

The lesson here was, although some routines can encourage positive behaviour, I should be careful or I might find myself locked into behavioral routines that could last weeks, months, or even years.