dering, “What’s the catch?” The oral surgeon gave him a little cup with ketamine. Broden took a swig. He spit it out and screamed. I started to panic a little bit as I looked over at the oral surgeon. He didn’t seem agitated or frustrated which helped me stay calm, “Can you give me the ketamine in a syringe? I can give it to him and get him to swallow. I do this all the time with meds.” He agreed to the plan and came back with the syringe. With little resistance we were able to get the medicine in Broden. His assistant smiled and whispered, “Ok, all we need to do is wait for about twenty minutes and we’ll be able to get an IV started.” Twenty minutes passed and Broden was still sitting up. The oral surgeon sat with Broden, “Relax and put your head back. It’s ok.” Broden continued to resist. Finally, I hear, “Alright, he needs it in the arm.” I knew that meant through a needle, so Mark and I leaned in to hold Broden. Broden screamed, looked over at the oral surgeon, and sternly said, “Dr. John!” Dr. John looked over at me as his eyes widened. “Okay Broden. This is really going to help you relax now.” Broden kept fighting. I asked his team to turn off the lights. Everyone started singing, “Sleepy time. Sleepy time.” I would rub his head and lay it down and then he would pop his head back up.

Forty minutes had passed and Broden still wouldn't lay his head down. Finally, Dr. John made the decision to do the IV. Mark and I leaned in and laid our hands on Broden for support. Broden screamed and then the IV was started. Dr. John gently patted Broden's shoulder, "Ok Broden, you're going to feel tired. Just lay

back. It's ok." I watched Broden's eyes as they rolled back while Dr. John guided his head back in the chair. The team smiled and ushered Mark and I into the waiting room.

After waiting for a moment that felt like a lifetime, we were called back to the room. Broden was laying back in the dental chair snoring. Dr. John came in and smiled. Everything went well. Understanding that Broden has autism, he repeated several steps to me over and over again, “Just watch for bleeding, keep his mouth as clean as possible and try to refrain from sugary sticky drinks that could breed bacteria.” He patted Broden again while assuring us that everything went well.

"Unfortunately, children with special needs may not have access to much needed oral care. It can be difficult finding medical specialists who are willing to work with our children with special needs because frankly, it can be harder and it calls for the medical provider to be creative in how care is administered."

Broden’s respite nurse was waiting for us when we got to our house to provide support. As Broden threw up blood and started to cry, we looked over at his nurse, “Is this normal?” She assured us that it was and it may happen a few more times, until his stomach is clear of blood from the procedure.

After Broden rested on the couch for a moment, he lifted his head and asked, "Home?" I assured him that we were home. He then asked to go to his room. The difficult moments through the first week of his care were unique because it focused around Broden's unique personality. Something as simple as a straw could throw off an entire day. Broden would come downstairs for breakfast and see pancakes cut up into squares and strawberries with the seeds cut off. He would look at me annoyed, but still sit down to eat. Then he would look at

his cup of ice water with a larger straw that had been replaced by the original straw to avoid dry pockets. Broden would point to the kitchen and say, "Straw." I knew exactly what he meant, "You can't use that straw. You'll suck too hard and you could get dry sockets!" Broden would scream at me continuously pointing to the kitchen while saying "straw" over and over again.

Moments, such as those, would try my patience and I would need to go upstairs for a few minutes to regroup. Arguing over a straw or how his food was cut up a certain way were the biggest obstacles. When I look back at the last conversation I had with Dr. John, his wise words to me got me through. In his way, he knew that the obstacles I would face with Broden would be unique to his autism. Dr. John knew that there wasn't a playbook that would lay out exactly what we needed to do to get through. He gave me a few things to strive towards to keep Broden on the path toward recovery. In the end, we needed to do it Broden's way.

Every so often, we get it right. There are moments when you get lucky and pair up with a medical team that cares and ensures your special needs child receives the care they need and sensitive to their needs. Dr. John called twice the first night after surgery to check on Broden. After thanking him profusely for the excellent care, he responded, "I'm just glad we could do this for Broden. This is one thing that needed to be done and you can now cross this off your list." He's right. Thanks to Dr. John, we will gladly cross this off Broden's list. •

PUZZLES & CAMO

Shelly Huhtanen is an Army wife stationed at Fort Jackson, SC. She enjoys sharing her experiences of her day-to-day life caring for her son with autism. Shelly authored Giving a Voice to the Silent Many that encompasses many stories of raising a child with autism in the military. She also teaches Public Communication at the University of South Carolina and has contributed to EP Magazine for over 10 years.