From Monday the 11th – Thursday the 14th all four of us were in Bodø while Magnus visited the Spesialpedagogisk Senter and the hospital in Bodø.  I’ve touched on it before, but never in depth as I will now.  Our son Magnus (3 years on February, 7th) has a speech/language problem and he is very small (weight) for his age. After a very long process our week was scheduled for the second week in January.  Our trip up north wasn’t the best but we made it… luckily.  (For the locals that read this you’ll completely understand my frustration.)  We decided to take the bus to catch our train, but for some reason our driver missed some passengers in Finneifjørd and decided to turn around at Dalselv to go back and pick them up.  He drove all the way to fucking Dalselv and turned around without notifying us.  Considering we only had about 30 minutes before our train left from Mo i Rana it wasn’t likely we’d make it if we had to turn around.  Ørjan raced up to the front to say we had a train to catch so the driver said it was ok – that he’d drive faster!  Too fast infact because while Sophie sat in my lap she puked all over us not once, but twice!  At that point Ørjan and I agreed it was enough and he demanded the driver take us to Bjerka so we wouldn’t miss our train.  He dropped us off, I ran into the station and ripped out the suitcase so I could put some clean clothes on Sophie and then the train arrived not one minute later.  I had to run to the platform without putting a jacket back on her.  We made it and that’s what’s important, but I wasn’t going to accept missing our first appointment because of the driver.  We made it to the centre later that evening (we stayed at the centre’s family housing) and we all fell asleep around 10.

Our first appointment was at 9am the next day and we (myself and Ørjan) were very nervous.  We were apprehensive about what they’d say but after 10 minutes with them we realized it was going to be a positive process.  It’s not that Magnus doesn’t understand us but he says very little and doesn’t seem to communicate at the level his peers.  At first we were very worried that maybe it was because we speak both English and Norwegian at home but they reassured us that it really has nothing to do with our choices.  After three days of testing and activities some conclusions were made and we all walked away feeling very satisfied and relieved with what they had to say: Magnus is a happy and healthy boy.  During one of the language tests I started to cry a bit because I had never heard Magnus speak so much.  I was so completely surprised and overwhelmed with the level of language and comprehension he has.  He even answered some of her questions in English!  Magnus uses a vocabulary of less than 20 words at home so I was in complete shock when he was speaking short sentences with words I had never come from his mouth.  At the hospital they did some simple tests, observed his movements and abilities, and took a long history.  I can’t say I was completely satisfied with the last day but things happen that we can’t change.  That’s all I’ll say for now.

One thing I do plan to make public is this – Ørjan’s mother has been holding back crucial information.  From the beginning (April 2009) we started this process to have Magnus tested and have help given for his needs.  The entire time his mom has been saying that we’ve been pushing him, that he’s still very young and we have nothing to worry about.  Well now, it seems to be not what she insists.  Her cousin (I work with her) told me that Ørjan was almost four years old when she started to understand what he said.  I started thinking that since Magnus is so like his dad that is has to be more than a conincidence.  From the beginning Magnus’ daycare, PPT, and the pediatric centre have been asking us about our family histories and whether or not any of us have had language difficulties.  This entire time she has refused to provide any information and has refused to accept that Magnus has difficulties.  One of the nights we were in Bodø she called to ask how things went and she conveniently mentioned that Ørjan spent a week in Bodø for testing just like Magnus.  WHAT THE FUCKING HELL?  We had been begging for information and only now she decides to mention this?  I’m extremely disappointed and I can see that Ørjan is feeling something he refuses to confont her with.  I really don’t know what to say to her now.  Hmmmm.

In all it was a very positive experience and I think we’re on our way to seeing some great improvements and achievements from him.  I’ve made it clear that I would like to learn sign language to aid in his needs and now we believe that each day they’ll be providing some private time for him to concentrate on his language skills.

- Og du, helvete du!  Kun ikke du bare si ifra tidligere?  Var det så vanskelig?  Det er mitt barn vi snakker om nå – ikke ditt!  Fortell meg nå hva i helvete problemet er!  Vi har spurt deg flere ganger i det siste året om Ørjan men du har nektet å gi oss informasjon.  Du har nektet å fortelle oss om Ørjan da han var liten, og du prøver å styre over Magnus, men tror du engentlig at det er best for alle?  Nå må du forklare alt du kan fordi nå er jeg ferdig.  Jeg er veldig veldig skuffet og sint.  Du altid har så mye å si og du er veldig flink å klage, så kom igjen nå!  Hvis du vil ikke fortelle meg så må jeg ringe til mor fordi hun or den eneste som har vært ærlig med oss.

I had to get  that off my chest.  It’s been festering since that night she called.