Abby De La Rosa is shining a light on her 2-year-old son Zillion’s daily life after he was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
Asked during an Instagram Q&A on Thursday, May 30, if her child is verbal or non-verbal, Abby replied, “He says 3-4 words but for the most part, he uses his tablet and signing to tell us what he wants.”
The DJ, 33, went on to recall the moment she knew her son with Nick Cannon was on the spectrum.
“This is a difficult one because he’s so active and can be quite attentive, but there were several signs I started noticing at 6-7 months,” she wrote via her Instagram Stories. “A mother’s intuition knows but I just tucked it away. It wasn’t until the last year (probably the busiest year ever) that I noticed my baby was really struggling with some things like eye squints, lack of eye contact, lining up his food and toys, specific color interest, etc.”
One common sign of autism is the performance of repetitive motions, actions or vocalizations. This practice is called self-stimulating or “stimming.” Abby said she “vividly” remembers her son’s first “real moment of stimming” that occurred in front of both mom and dad.
“He was jumping a little harder than usual on the bed and then all of a sudden, he started flapping his little hands and became repetitive with the flaps,” she said. “It startled me and I remember feeling my heart starting to race and in that moment, I just knew.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior.
Nick, 43, and Abby — who also share Zion, 2, and Beautiful Zeppelin, 17 months — first revealed Zillion’s diagnosis on World Autism Awareness Day.
“Our beautiful boy experiences life in 4D and teaches us something new everyday!” the couple wrote in a joint post via Instagram on April 2. “His love, strength and brilliance light up every room he enters! We are blessed that God had placed such an amazing spirit under our guardianship and we have accepted this assignment wholeheartedly!”
By sharing their story, the pair hoped to “create a world of acceptance and compassion” for autistic kids and their families.
