X Factor’s Sam Bailey shares heartbreaking post about autistic son
X FACTOR Sam Bailey, 45, has shared a heartbreaking post about her autistic son Tommy.
The star’s 12-year-old son was diagnosed with autism two years ago and she admitted he’s struggle to cope with London’s crowds recently.
In the candid post, singing star Sam shared a photo of her husband trying to calm their son down during a visit to the capital.
Sam’s son could be seen sitting on the floor while her husband Craig reassured him after he became overwhelmed.
The star wrote to fans: “I posted this picture of my husband trying to calm down my son yesterday on a visit to London! The response has been Unreal!
“For those who don’t know, My son Tommy has Autism. We were taking the children to London to lay some flowers for the queen and then taking him to the Stranger Things experience whilst my girls were going to see Matilda: The Musical.
“The girls had gone at this point and we had been walking for quite a bit. it was busy! People everywhere! I’m always conscious of how busy it is whenever we go to a big city.”
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Sam, who won X Factor in 2013, continued to say her son’s legs start to “hurt and ache” when he stands for long periods.
She added: “This tells his brain he needs to sit, this is when the meltdown will start… if he can’t physically sit down!
“These are the things I have only just started to learn about my son as his diagnosis was only two years ago.”
Sam said that before learning this, she assumed her son was “being lazy” when they’d take him to a big city.
She said: “The last two years has been such a learning curve.
“And for people who say.. ‘Don’t take him to big cities then’ I say… one day he’s going to be an adult and I want him to be able to feel more comfortable in busy environments and be able to cope better.
“If we wrap him in bubble wrap he will become a recluse. For anyone out there who has a child with autism and they struggle...
“WE UNDERSTAND! You are not alone and the more awareness we create… the better the world our special children will live in!!!”
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Sam’s friends and fans shared their praise for her honest post, with Christine McGuinness, who has three children with autism, writing: “You're doing amazing.”
When he was initially diagnosed, Sam opened up about being wracked with guilt over the way she's treated her son.
She told Fabulous: "I feel so incredibly guilty for all the times I’ve told him off for stuff.
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"Now I think, ‘I was so horrible to him’ and I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to him.
"He’s very emotional and has low self esteem. When he's having a bad day, trying to bring him out of that sadness is the most challenging thing."
