A mother of a child with autism is challenging people’s perceptions of children who live with the condition through her blog, My Boy Blue.

Nicole Duggan, from Ireland, created the blog to document her son’s journey of living with autism since and to help those around her understand it.

She hopes that by reading her blog, people who once judged will take the time to learn about the condition.

Her 3-year-old son, Riley, was diagnosed in 2016 – and despite the diagnosis, Nicole describes him as being the ‘happiest little boy in the world’.

He is non-verbal, and has recently started communicating a little through sign language.

In a recent blog post, Nicole penned an open letter to the ‘judgers’ of the world.

She described once dreaming of all the ‘normal things’ – holding her baby for the first time, dressing him up, showing him off, listening to their first word, watching the first time they clap their hands and their first steps.

But Nicole goes on to admit that in her house, things are ‘far from normal’.

She wrote: ‘Yes we had some of them, but they have disappeared. Words were lost, milestones missed and many tears were cried along the way. This is not “laziness” on his part. It is not him being stubborn and it most certainly is not him acting up.

‘My little boy is just like your child, he loves to dance, he loves to be cuddled, he cries when he falls, and he adores Mickey mouse. He is however “wired differently”.

‘The small things we take for granted every day are the hardest things for him to cope with.’

Nicole explains that different lights, sounds and smells or even the look of something can cause an ‘overload’ that is ‘too hard for an adult to deal with’ let alone Riley.

Normal things such as shopping, playing with other children or even a hair cut can be unbearable or him.

Nicole later aimed her letter towards parents, and the impact they can have on her son. She said: ‘To the mothers that pull their children away from him, you are creating the bullys of the future.

‘Children don’t notice the differences they just want to play, let them.’

She continued: ‘To the lady that called him bold in the supermarket, try to look at things from his perspective. An overload of colours and sounds. People whizzing past you. You too would cry your eyes out if you could not tell anyone how you are feeling when it all gets too much.

‘To the friends that have disappeared, I hope this never knocks on your front door. I would not change my small man for the world and if you cannot understand him and how he works, then you do not deserve to be in his life in the first place.’

To finish her letter, Nicole explained to all who are yet to understand that ‘children with needs are the bravest, most courageous and most amazing little people in this world’.

She said: ‘They are fighting battles nobody knows and I guarantee not one adult would make it through half of the obstacles they do. Just because there is not a physical difference does not mean they are simply bold.

‘So this year I ask you to think before you judge, live a day in my small man’s shoes and you will understand how much of a superhero he really is.’

Nicole’s post has received more than 600 likes since being posted, and many people have come forward to congratulate her on her letter and her parenting.

One woman said: ‘Beautiful and from the heart. It’s tough with a child that needs extra help you need to fight more and you have to stand up for them and your doing a fantastic job.’

Another wrote: ‘Lovely post. And totally agree, children don’t notice the differences, it’s the adults that do. And it’s their responses that teach their children how to respond. One of the most important things we can do for our children is spread awareness of autism and hopefully by doing so encourage acceptance.’