Vanderpump Rules alum Brittany Cartwright opened up about her son, Cruz, who she shares with estranged husband Jax Taylor, and revealed that he was diagnosed with autism.
“Our life is going to look a little bit different, but I feel like I was meant to be his mom,” Brittany, 36, told People in an interview published on Wednesday, April 9. “He is my better half. He is my little partner in crime. He is everything to me, and even though he can’t talk, I know everything that he wants, everything that he needs. We’re just so synched, it’s incredible.”
The Valley star said that Cruz, who will turn 4 on April 12, crawled and walked early, but she and Jax, 45, began to notice he was “regressing in his speech” when he was about to turn 2 years old. Brittany shared that Cruz “almost stopped talking completely.” While he’s “mostly nonverbal,” he will “sporadically say different words,” like “Mommy.”
Before now, Brittany had only told her close friends and family about Cruz’s diagnosis.
“I wrote this paragraph out and talked about his diagnosis, what it meant, what we’re working on and how I felt like I was meant for this,” the Bravo star explained.
She added, “Yes, it might be challenging at times, but I couldn’t imagine my life being different. It can be sad at times because you want them to live life to the fullest, and he does, he just does it in a different way. What I really want people to understand about autism is he sees the world so much more vibrant and amazing than any of us ever will. It doesn’t mean that he’s not going to be the smartest in his class. It doesn’t mean he is not going to work for NASA one day. There aren’t any limitations to what he can do.”
For now, Brittany said that she’s focused mainly on “early intervention.”
“This is the time he’s building his brain,” she told the outlet. “I’m just trying to do everything I possibly can to help him live the happiest life ever. I feel very blessed that I’m able to give him everything that he needs, and that’s why I want to help as many mothers as I can. I have learned so much over the past couple years.”
Fans saw Brittany and Jax begin their search for answers in season 1 of The Valley as they put Cruz in speech and occupational therapy, and that’s something he’s continued to work on with professionals. Plus, the Kentucky native has made some accommodations for Cruz at their house. Cruz has a sensory room, a swing set and pool at home, as well as a therapeutic companion that accompanies him to preschool to help with his social skills.
“I just make sure that he never misses a class, never misses a therapy session,” Brittany said. “If I have to work, I have the most amazing nanny in the entire world, she is literally my family. I don’t know what I would do without her. Sometimes Jax will take him. I want him to learn things as well, but the majority of the time, it’s me. And I feel like I need to be there, I need to be learning what’s going on, so that I can really work with him at home as well.”
