Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

When Toni Braxton's youngest son Diezel Ky, 5 ½, was diagnosed with autism in 2006, like countless other parents, her emotional response ran the gamut. "You tend to blame yourself," Toni admits in the Oct. 27 issue of PEOPLE, adding that she tortured herself with the question: "Is there something I did wrong?" With guilt comes a certain level of acceptance -- and that isn't always easy to come by, either. "A lot of times, parents are in denial because they want to think their child is perfect," the 41-year-old songstress says. Over time, however, she was able to "come to terms" with the diagnosis and with the help of an applied behavioral analysis (ABA) specialist who works with Diezel both at home and at school, Toni's family appears to have brighter days ahead.

"A friend of mine told me, 'Toni, all these autistic kids in the world now, they are God's new angels, and they are here to show us life differently.' I've been embracing that...He's a wonderful kid."

Because she had the experience of raising Denim Cole, her 6 ½-year-old son, to draw from, Toni says she knew that Diezel wasn't developing normally when he refused eye contact and failed to say basic words like "cup" or "juice," or even her name. "As a mom you can tell," says Toni, a spokeswoman for the nonprofit group Autism Speaks. While Diezel continues to exhibit sensory issues, particularly with regard to loud noises, Toni is of the belief that "it's just that these kids have to be taught differently."

Denim, who is described by his mom as "smart," likes to "Google everything." Smart indeed! He even attempted to leverage Toni's appearance on Dancing With the Stars -- which ended in a surprise elimination earlier this week -- to score an iPhone, asking, "How else am I going to vote for Mom?"

Diezel and Denim are Toni's children with husband Keri Lewis, whom she married in 2001.

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Aww, her kids are so cute! I love Denim's jacket (although I hope the hair is just a phase! )

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Denim and Diezel??

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Cute family.

But I really thought her and her DH split up a few yrs ago. Glad to see I was wrong.

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Posted by WhatNow

Denim and Diezel??

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Autism has ALWAYS bben around, but it is just now being openly discussed. I have a hard time with "celebrities" talking about this. My cousin has been Autistic for 24yrs and nobody ever told us he was an angle from G*D, in fact many people were so mean to him that he could not handle going to school. I'm glad people are talking about it, but the fact os that this is NOT a new disease.

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Posted by stayandjohn

Posted by WhatNow

Denim and Diezel??

Glad I'm not the only one doing this

Maybe she got an endorsment from diesel jeans

Re: Toni Braxton 'Comes to Terms' with Son's Autism Diagnosis

Posted by stayandjohn

Posted by WhatNow

Denim and Diezel??

Glad I'm not the only one doing this

Maybe she got an endorsment from diesel jeans