Fighting Autism: A Mother's Story

Dec. 16, 2009 — -- At the age of 18 months, Roman Scott was diagnosed with a form of autism. By age 4, he no longer tested on the autism spectrum.

Although there is no cure for autism, and references in medical literature to "overcoming" autism symptoms are few and far between, Roman's mom, Elizabeth Scott, and his pediatrician, Dr. Jacquelynn Longshaw, believed that through much patience and training, Roman could overcome the odds.

"The whole thing was difficult because I was so afraid," Scott said today on "Good Morning America." "I was terrified of losing my son."

Click here to visit ABC News' austism resource center.

Elizabeth Scott first noticed the troubling signs when Roman was only a few months old.

"I could literally start seeing the symptoms overtaking him, and he was beginning to slip away right before my eyes" recalls Scott.

The symptoms progressed Scott says, and pretty soon seemed to affect just about every interaction.

"He couldn't eat without constantly choking on food. He began fixating or staring at ceiling fans, flags and lights. He didn't want to be touched ... and he was afraid to touch a lot of normal objects, everyday objects like bubbles, Play-Doh, even rain," Scott remembered.

It didn't take long before these symptoms had a name: pervasive developmental disorder, a type of autism that delays development and socialization.

"I knew, when they said the "A" word, we were in so much trouble. So, you know, my heart was broken. I was just devastated," said Scott.

While she may have been devastated on the inside, Scott did not want to retreat in fear or wait and see. She promptly quit her teaching job to spend her days with Roman, full-time, for three years to try to lure him away from his symptoms and teach him new thought patterns and skills.