The baby was so active in the womb that her mom dreamed it was sticking it's arms down it's mom's legs, and then when she felt her stomach stretch and looked down, she could see the shape of a small arm and hand sticking out. After the baby was born, she was cleaned, poked, and prodded, wrapped up and picked at to draw blood. Barely a peep escaped her lips. But then, they went and put a diaper on her. Her wails brought the house down. This baby jumped a foot when a door shut, wanted to suck incessantly, and went for 6-7 hours stretches at a time without sleeping. She was never floppy, never needed to have someone support her head. That was just the first 3 days of life. Lucky for her mom, it was her first and she had no idea what she was in for. The nurses knew, they sent her home with extra diapers and things because they were pretty sure Mom wasn't going to get out much...
Sensory integration refers to how we receive and process the information that comes in to us through our senses. New babies have to learn how to process things and over time we get better at it. For some of us, things don't go all that smoothly.
To some extent, sensory issues are pretty clear to all of us, as we all have our little quirks. Some of us think okra is yummy and others can't stand it's slimy texture. Some people fall apart when a chalkboard is scratched, others couldn't care less. I'm sure you've noticed that sometimes it's fun to listen to loud music, but other times, it is just annoying racket. Think of things like this on a much bigger scale. Some kids seem to only deal with these issues and for others, it comes along with Autism, Downs Syndrome, ADHD and many other conditions. The next Diagnostic Scale Manual will list this as it's own condition, Sensory Processing Disorder. Right now, it is known by many names, but Sensory is usually in there.
Ho-Hum!, you are probably thinking. Well, not if you had been searching for nigh unto 16 years for the root cause of a set of confusing symptoms that were making life difficult for your children and yourself, and they keep getting labels that fit in some ways but don't really quite match up completely. Then it's about as exciting as winning a lottery, or discovering a new galaxy or falling in love or something along the lines of "EUREKA!". This is the Espinoza Syndrome: the hub around which all our difficulties lie. That's why I'm going to write this sort of boring thing so that someone else who had no idea and needs to know, will find out and it will change their life. This discovery has been cathartic for me, because it is the first thing that totally fits. Everything ties back into this. It is THE MISSING LINK; finally found!
So here's the deal. We all come with our own little wiring system. In utero, millions of little nerve cells form and attach together into a neat little system that looks like a tree, ever branching out. The deal is, we usually form a whole lot more of these little branches than we really need. Partly because some of these connections are kinda messed up; imagine someone who got on the wrong flight and ended up in Jersey instead of Jamaica. So, usually the ones that end up in the right place form better connections, just like puzzle pieces in the right place work better. Sometime late in pregnancy, the body kinda prunes this tree, getting rid of weak or dysfunctional branches. Too bad you can't do that to your family tree you're thinking, right? But guess what? Sometimes too many or too few branches get pruned. Or simply, the wrong branches get cut off. This makes for little ones (and grown-ups) who have a much harder time using their senses. The information coming in through their senses can be incorrect or inconsistent. They can be over or under sensitive with any and all of the different senses and this can vary from day to day. Because of this, some people seek out more sensory stimuli or actively avoid some stimuli that they find overwhelming. This also affects their arousal level- which involves alertness, focus and filtering information as well as self regulation and relaxation. The different senses being processed are: Touch, Proprioception - (gotcha! This means your awareness of where your own body and it's parts are at without looking at them.) Hearing, Vestibular (how you handle movement), Sight, Taste, and Smell.
That's the boring part. Well, actually, here's another pretty boring list of symptoms you might see in a child with these issues, but I promise you that living with them is anything but boring:
-Oversensitivity or undersensitivity to different sensory experiences.
-High distractibility, problems paying attention and staying focused on tasks.
-Unusually high or low activity levels.
-Frequent tuning out or withdrawing.
-Intense, out of proportion reactions to challenging situations and unfamiliar environments.
-Impulsiveness, little or no self control
-Difficulty transitioning from one activity or situation to another
-Rigidity and inflexibility at times
-Clumsiness and carelessness
-Discomfort in group situations
-Social or emotional difficulties
-Developmental and learning delays and acting silly or immature
-Awkwardness, insecurity, or feeling stupid or weird
-Low frustration threshold; tendency to tantrum longer and more intensely that other children and more difficulty returning to a calm state
-Difficulty transitioning from an alert, active state to a calm, rested state like from waking to sleeping or active to calm activity.
*this list basically comes from this book here.
Of course, everyone does some of this sometimes but if it is not age appropriate, is just much more intense or frequent and interrupts daily function, welcome to the SI crowd. What causes it? You guessed it, we're not sure, but if you take a father who sniffs everything he touches and can't pay attention to a sentence that is longer than 7 words, and add a highly distracted mother who can't look at American cheese without getting a headache and then you add this kind of pregnancy and delivery, you have a good recipe for it.
What does it look like day to day? Read my blog :) I must clarify that my kids are primarily sensory seekers, mixed with a healthy sprinkling of sensations they avoid. Kids who are mostly over sensitive may look really different. (They probably don't ever comb their hair either though-it bugs them too much.) Everyone is unique. The list above is the unpleasant side of it, but it can also be as exciting as an action flick: kids who jump out the second story window, eat drywall, or bounce on their hoppy ball at the tip top of a pile of blankets and towels. It can be pretty racy too. You see a lot of skin: skin that doesn't want to feel clothes on it. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a free naked butler racing to open the door the minute the doorbell rings. On the other side of the coin, you will have someone piling on the tight layers of clothes or wearing their coat all day long to feel comfortable. Your furniture may be in constant movement, to the point that you feel like you are living with a bunch of stage managers and the play is never over. The trampoline becomes an outdoor room, more indispensable than kleenex, because the natives are literally bouncing off the walls. It can also lead to emotional traditions like the Annual Basement Flooding, and the Furniture Hacking Fests. It's an action-packed lifestyle, but if it gets too exciting- like your daughter doesn't sleep till she's 5 years old, your son is slashing your mattress and box springs because you sent him to his room, and another can't stay seated long enough to eat a meal or learn at school, you can help. Check out the book reference above, click on the sensory smart link at the bottom of my sidebar, or take a look through some web sites like this. Even if you don't have these issues, you'd be surprised how much better you will understand any kid or how your senses affect you.
How do you help? In a nutshell, you can do some occupational therapy that helps them meet their craving for sensory stimulation in safe and productive ways and helps them calm, or you can gradually help their bodies learn to tolerate things that are way too overstimulating for them. Hope this is helpful to someone somewhere who's just getting started down this road-pass it on!
Showing posts with label autism awareness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label autism awareness. Show all posts
Friday, April 25, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Be Aware: Diagnoses and All of Us
What are Pervasive Developmental Disorders?
The diagnostic category of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) refers to a group of disorders characterized by delays in the development of socialization and communication skills. Parents may note symptoms as early as infancy, although the typical age of onset is before 3 years of age. Symptoms may include problems with using and understanding language; difficulty relating to people, objects, and events; unusual play with toys and other objects; difficulty with changes in routine or familiar surroundings, and repetitive body movements or behavior patterns.
Autism (a developmental brain disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication skills, and a limited range of activities and interests) is the most characteristic and best studied PDD.
Other types of PDD include Asperger's Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, and Rett's Syndrome. Children with PDD vary widely in abilities, intelligence, and behaviors. Some children do not speak at all, others speak in limited phrases or conversations, and some have relatively normal language development. Repetitive play skills and limited social skills are generally evident. Unusual responses to sensory information, such as loud noises and lights, are also common.(http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/pdd/pdd.htm)
That's just one definition of one cluster of developmental issues. Every one I looked up was similar, but different. Try googling a few of these:
ADD/ADHD, SID/SPD, ODD, OCD, CD, CDD, AS, PDD's, SDD's, SLI, SPLD, CAPD, Bipolar Disorder, LD's, and we're just scratching the surface.
Welcome to the confusing world of syndromes, developmental delays, mental illnesses and other neurological injuries or difficulties, not to mention acronyms. It is so confusing because no one really totally agrees exactly on where a particular diagnosis starts or ends or where it overlaps with another. Things are being re-categorized all the time. In children, these diagnoses are even more confusing, as their symptoms are based on observation, and vary from how they appear in adults. You can take a person with symptoms and get as many different diagnoses as there are people diagnosing. Add to this that from one year to the next in a child's development, they might present differently, and their diagnosis can change. Then, where does personality end and disorder take over? And here is another seeming contradiction. A child can be considered developmentally delayed or learning disabled and in need of special education, while at the exact same time, be considered a genius and in need of gifted services.
Here's the conclusions I've come to:
1. Neurological science is a new and fast growing discipline with lots of changes in nomenclature and understanding along the way.
2. People who seem "different" really have a lot in common with a lot of "normal" people out there. However:
3. Somewhere along the line, something caused them to be "more" of a particular trait or traits to the point that it has a negative impact albeit mild, moderate or severe, on their progress and functioning in the environment they live in. That's when it becomes a diagnosis, because they are now in need of some kind of support in order to function to the best of their abilities.
4. Somehow, all these syndromes and spectrum are interrelated and have symptoms in common. People tend to have a cluster of conditions, not one in isolation. Either the root issue causes the others, or somehow, it is all related to the same difference somewhere there in the brain, causing symptoms that may fit in an array of different classifications.
5. Time will tell where this all goes. Patience and aggressive determination somehow have to become bedfellows if you are living with a condition.
6. We all need to learn to understand and embrace the positive qualities people with different disorders have. These conditions are two-edged swords. One side is amazingly beautiful, the other side is miserably difficult. Don't think of those who suffer these conditions as just some kind of damaged goods, they are not. If you really look close, they are a lot like you and me.
Here's where the story gets personal. I have hesitated to say anything beyond the acronym ADHD in an open forum like this, where I can't read your vibes and respond to your reactions, because I don't want to change the way you look at my kids. They really are fun, whimsical, wonderful kids, but...I didn't just study everything under the sun for fun, I did it out of necessity. My kids are a little bit "extra" in different ways. Finding help for them has been a maze: at times a frustrating and frightening maze.They don't easily fit into one category, which is why I like to just call it the Espinoza Syndrome, or the Scooby gene for fun sometimes. The best general description as a group would be ADHD with Sensory Integration issues. Some other labels one or the other have been given are Dysthemia, Dyslexia, Depression, Generalized Anxiety, Speech Language Delay, Central Auditory Processing Disorder, some symptoms of, but not full blown Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and my youngest two as PDD but considered off the spectrum at this point. In many circles, PDD means you're on the spectrum. See what I mean about confusing? For now, it's for lack of a better term. We will wait and see, somewhere kitty corner to the spectrum for now. Technically, it doesn't matter as long as we can understand and help them grow. Maybe another day I'll describe what this looks like, but today I'm trying to make a point about diagnoses. Diagnoses are not set in stone and are not death sentences, and are not meant to stigmatize people. They shouldn't be a reason to discriminate, but a means to understand someone and ways to find things that work for them and access help for them.
We may sound like a nut house to you when you read our little list. But I see it as just one neurological issue that is causing this "charm bracelet" of acronyms as the OASIS people call it. Many kids on the spectrum are collectors of diagnoses too. They may be both on the autism spectrum and in the ADD bunch too.
In my children's case, they aren't severely affected like many children I've seen, just enough to need some help to lead a normal life. I don't think they should see themselves as disabled or limited, but as unique, wonderful people with a few extra challenges. I am sure that they are all gifted and intelligent. With the help they are getting, they are pretty much like any other kid out there. Greater than average blogging material maybe, and adorable. Without help, things would be miserable around here, this I know from experience. We're lucky in our case that we can do a lot at home for them.
It's true, our house is a circus, a zoo, a wild place but it is also a place where there is love and progress and I am amazed at how wonderful these guys are who stretch me to my very limits and sometimes beyond. Thanks to them, I have had to learn a little more than the average parent. Sometimes I resent the extra work, but there is extra joy. There are so many parents out there facing MUCH greater challenges. They really need help and understanding from those around them. It's way too hard to do alone, in a vacuum.
So, maybe this is more than an autism post, but the autistic community belongs to this greater community that is out there. The parents of the kids that are "more" than your average kid. Thanks to my children, I can begin to understand and empathize with what other parents and children are dealing with. I want to reach out and help. I want them to be understood and supported. I know how much they need it, because my littler challenges have left me treading water and almost drowning on occasion. My children have taught me to be aware of how wonderful and amazing the human brain is and how unique but similar we all are. Please take the time this month to get to know your autistic neighbors and learn a little more about what goes beyond the stereotypes. Once you understand them, you will be a better friend and your life will be enriched with your new understanding and ability to reach out to them. There is a whole range of different faces of autism, from the ones with Asperger's, who use our words almost seamlessly and just seem odd or difficult, to the silent who only talk through their actions. If you want to read a good post to get you started, click here. Tell me you don't know someone like this man, or have some traits in common. I dare you. :)
The diagnostic category of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) refers to a group of disorders characterized by delays in the development of socialization and communication skills. Parents may note symptoms as early as infancy, although the typical age of onset is before 3 years of age. Symptoms may include problems with using and understanding language; difficulty relating to people, objects, and events; unusual play with toys and other objects; difficulty with changes in routine or familiar surroundings, and repetitive body movements or behavior patterns.
Autism (a developmental brain disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication skills, and a limited range of activities and interests) is the most characteristic and best studied PDD.
Other types of PDD include Asperger's Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, and Rett's Syndrome. Children with PDD vary widely in abilities, intelligence, and behaviors. Some children do not speak at all, others speak in limited phrases or conversations, and some have relatively normal language development. Repetitive play skills and limited social skills are generally evident. Unusual responses to sensory information, such as loud noises and lights, are also common.(http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/pdd/pdd.htm)
That's just one definition of one cluster of developmental issues. Every one I looked up was similar, but different. Try googling a few of these:
ADD/ADHD, SID/SPD, ODD, OCD, CD, CDD, AS, PDD's, SDD's, SLI, SPLD, CAPD, Bipolar Disorder, LD's, and we're just scratching the surface.
Welcome to the confusing world of syndromes, developmental delays, mental illnesses and other neurological injuries or difficulties, not to mention acronyms. It is so confusing because no one really totally agrees exactly on where a particular diagnosis starts or ends or where it overlaps with another. Things are being re-categorized all the time. In children, these diagnoses are even more confusing, as their symptoms are based on observation, and vary from how they appear in adults. You can take a person with symptoms and get as many different diagnoses as there are people diagnosing. Add to this that from one year to the next in a child's development, they might present differently, and their diagnosis can change. Then, where does personality end and disorder take over? And here is another seeming contradiction. A child can be considered developmentally delayed or learning disabled and in need of special education, while at the exact same time, be considered a genius and in need of gifted services.
Here's the conclusions I've come to:
1. Neurological science is a new and fast growing discipline with lots of changes in nomenclature and understanding along the way.
2. People who seem "different" really have a lot in common with a lot of "normal" people out there. However:
3. Somewhere along the line, something caused them to be "more" of a particular trait or traits to the point that it has a negative impact albeit mild, moderate or severe, on their progress and functioning in the environment they live in. That's when it becomes a diagnosis, because they are now in need of some kind of support in order to function to the best of their abilities.
4. Somehow, all these syndromes and spectrum are interrelated and have symptoms in common. People tend to have a cluster of conditions, not one in isolation. Either the root issue causes the others, or somehow, it is all related to the same difference somewhere there in the brain, causing symptoms that may fit in an array of different classifications.
5. Time will tell where this all goes. Patience and aggressive determination somehow have to become bedfellows if you are living with a condition.
6. We all need to learn to understand and embrace the positive qualities people with different disorders have. These conditions are two-edged swords. One side is amazingly beautiful, the other side is miserably difficult. Don't think of those who suffer these conditions as just some kind of damaged goods, they are not. If you really look close, they are a lot like you and me.
Here's where the story gets personal. I have hesitated to say anything beyond the acronym ADHD in an open forum like this, where I can't read your vibes and respond to your reactions, because I don't want to change the way you look at my kids. They really are fun, whimsical, wonderful kids, but...I didn't just study everything under the sun for fun, I did it out of necessity. My kids are a little bit "extra" in different ways. Finding help for them has been a maze: at times a frustrating and frightening maze.They don't easily fit into one category, which is why I like to just call it the Espinoza Syndrome, or the Scooby gene for fun sometimes. The best general description as a group would be ADHD with Sensory Integration issues. Some other labels one or the other have been given are Dysthemia, Dyslexia, Depression, Generalized Anxiety, Speech Language Delay, Central Auditory Processing Disorder, some symptoms of, but not full blown Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and my youngest two as PDD but considered off the spectrum at this point. In many circles, PDD means you're on the spectrum. See what I mean about confusing? For now, it's for lack of a better term. We will wait and see, somewhere kitty corner to the spectrum for now. Technically, it doesn't matter as long as we can understand and help them grow. Maybe another day I'll describe what this looks like, but today I'm trying to make a point about diagnoses. Diagnoses are not set in stone and are not death sentences, and are not meant to stigmatize people. They shouldn't be a reason to discriminate, but a means to understand someone and ways to find things that work for them and access help for them.
We may sound like a nut house to you when you read our little list. But I see it as just one neurological issue that is causing this "charm bracelet" of acronyms as the OASIS people call it. Many kids on the spectrum are collectors of diagnoses too. They may be both on the autism spectrum and in the ADD bunch too.
In my children's case, they aren't severely affected like many children I've seen, just enough to need some help to lead a normal life. I don't think they should see themselves as disabled or limited, but as unique, wonderful people with a few extra challenges. I am sure that they are all gifted and intelligent. With the help they are getting, they are pretty much like any other kid out there. Greater than average blogging material maybe, and adorable. Without help, things would be miserable around here, this I know from experience. We're lucky in our case that we can do a lot at home for them.
It's true, our house is a circus, a zoo, a wild place but it is also a place where there is love and progress and I am amazed at how wonderful these guys are who stretch me to my very limits and sometimes beyond. Thanks to them, I have had to learn a little more than the average parent. Sometimes I resent the extra work, but there is extra joy. There are so many parents out there facing MUCH greater challenges. They really need help and understanding from those around them. It's way too hard to do alone, in a vacuum.
So, maybe this is more than an autism post, but the autistic community belongs to this greater community that is out there. The parents of the kids that are "more" than your average kid. Thanks to my children, I can begin to understand and empathize with what other parents and children are dealing with. I want to reach out and help. I want them to be understood and supported. I know how much they need it, because my littler challenges have left me treading water and almost drowning on occasion. My children have taught me to be aware of how wonderful and amazing the human brain is and how unique but similar we all are. Please take the time this month to get to know your autistic neighbors and learn a little more about what goes beyond the stereotypes. Once you understand them, you will be a better friend and your life will be enriched with your new understanding and ability to reach out to them. There is a whole range of different faces of autism, from the ones with Asperger's, who use our words almost seamlessly and just seem odd or difficult, to the silent who only talk through their actions. If you want to read a good post to get you started, click here. Tell me you don't know someone like this man, or have some traits in common. I dare you. :)
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Al
Al was a little boy who had loving, well educated parents and a great home environment. His mom loved to take him and his sister on outings, play music and read books to them. He had a close relationship with his little sister that carried throughout their lives. His father gave him a compass when he was little and he was fascinated by it. He was a bright boy.
When Al got to school, things got harder for him. He really didn't like school. See, Al wasn't talking much yet. Verbal communication was not his forte. He was 9 before he could successfully communicate his thoughts well. Following the strict school setting and focusing on what the teacher wanted him to was not going so well. He just wasn't interested in what the teacher wanted to do. He was doing poorly in school. One teacher went so far as to tell his parents that Al would never make a success of anything. His parents didn't believe that teacher. One day Al's uncle gave him a geometry book and he loved it. He started to do really well in math.
When Al was a teenager, his family had to make a move and it was determined it would be best for him to finish at boarding school. It was a mess. He didn't get along with his peers. They teased him for his ethnic background. He still didn't do well outside of math and science. He left boarding school. After testing and failing to get into a prestigious institute, the director, recognizing his very high scores in math and science suggested he study and test again. He got in the second time. He did finish school this time, but he was a disorganized and absent minded student. The teachers were often exasperated at all his questioning and the fact that he refused to study things he wasn't interested in. He was moody one day and happy go lucky the next.
Al lived in a time when there weren't a hundred acronyms: no special ed classes, gifted programs, or child psychologists around to help him. Today he would have an IEP to accommodate him. He may have been labeled PDD or ADD or ODD or any combination of things. He might have been considered to be on the autism spectrum. He might not have had a label, but that didn't change the fact that some parts of life were quite hard for him. Luckily. he was one of the children with enough going for him to make it through school. Many kids with similar issues didn't, and don't, fare so well. In spite of all their wonderful abilities, they end up dropping out or in dead end jobs that never utilize their full potential. Many struggle their whole lives somehow out of step with the rest of humanity and unable to get along with people.
Al struggled after school to find good jobs with his track record. Later on however, he received recognition and acclaim for his Theory of Relativity. In time, the whole world came to recognize and appreciate the brilliant and wonderful person that he was, that his parents always knew he was. His life wasn't without bumps, but he was easily one of the most influential people in the modern world and most of our technology, your cell phone for example, is based on his work. So, the next time you look at that boy who doesn't talk much yet, or seems moody or quirky, or doesn't pay attention in class, or stubbornly refuses to do his homework, just remember, you may be looking at the next Einstein.
When Al got to school, things got harder for him. He really didn't like school. See, Al wasn't talking much yet. Verbal communication was not his forte. He was 9 before he could successfully communicate his thoughts well. Following the strict school setting and focusing on what the teacher wanted him to was not going so well. He just wasn't interested in what the teacher wanted to do. He was doing poorly in school. One teacher went so far as to tell his parents that Al would never make a success of anything. His parents didn't believe that teacher. One day Al's uncle gave him a geometry book and he loved it. He started to do really well in math.
When Al was a teenager, his family had to make a move and it was determined it would be best for him to finish at boarding school. It was a mess. He didn't get along with his peers. They teased him for his ethnic background. He still didn't do well outside of math and science. He left boarding school. After testing and failing to get into a prestigious institute, the director, recognizing his very high scores in math and science suggested he study and test again. He got in the second time. He did finish school this time, but he was a disorganized and absent minded student. The teachers were often exasperated at all his questioning and the fact that he refused to study things he wasn't interested in. He was moody one day and happy go lucky the next.
Al lived in a time when there weren't a hundred acronyms: no special ed classes, gifted programs, or child psychologists around to help him. Today he would have an IEP to accommodate him. He may have been labeled PDD or ADD or ODD or any combination of things. He might have been considered to be on the autism spectrum. He might not have had a label, but that didn't change the fact that some parts of life were quite hard for him. Luckily. he was one of the children with enough going for him to make it through school. Many kids with similar issues didn't, and don't, fare so well. In spite of all their wonderful abilities, they end up dropping out or in dead end jobs that never utilize their full potential. Many struggle their whole lives somehow out of step with the rest of humanity and unable to get along with people.
Al struggled after school to find good jobs with his track record. Later on however, he received recognition and acclaim for his Theory of Relativity. In time, the whole world came to recognize and appreciate the brilliant and wonderful person that he was, that his parents always knew he was. His life wasn't without bumps, but he was easily one of the most influential people in the modern world and most of our technology, your cell phone for example, is based on his work. So, the next time you look at that boy who doesn't talk much yet, or seems moody or quirky, or doesn't pay attention in class, or stubbornly refuses to do his homework, just remember, you may be looking at the next Einstein.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Be Aware of Autism
If you look on my sidebar, you will see a nifty little banner about blogging for autism awareness. This is an event that will go on all this month all over the blogosphere. Click on it and read articles way better than mine. Why should I care? I don't have an autistic child. However, I do know, within about a 4 x4 block area around my home alone, about 8 people who are on the autism spectrum. I know people in other areas of the community , many among friends, and one in the extended family. I see many in the Early education and special ed departments at the schools my children attend. I have interpreted for education on autism and parents of autistic children. It is everywhere.
Did you even know much about autism when you were growing up? Did you know anyone who had it? It was something rarely heard of. I remember seeing a made for TV movie once about a child. That was it. In part the old trend to institutionalize these children may explain some of why that is. Also, today there is so much more information at our disposal. High functioning autistics weren't even recognized as such until later years. Even so, I truly believe that there is a real epidemic going on, and it behooves us to be aware of it and act upon it.
Maybe in part there are more autistic kids because more kids survive than before. That still doesn't explain the numbers today: 1 in 150. Something is going on, and no one yet knows what it is. Is it environmental, nutritional, a fluke of evolution? Is it caused by heredity or vaccinations? There are no definitive answers. Much needs to be done in the way of research.
Another important issue is that many of the therapies that are found to be very beneficial are not covered by most insurances. Just getting a good diagnosis can be very difficult. The biggest shame about this is that the younger it is identified and intervention is put in place, the better the prognosis for the child's development. This is the future of a big chunk of our population. If we don't help them reach their best potential now, to be able to deal with the society they live in, and care for themselves, many who could learn to meet several of these needs will not. We need to figure out better ways to care for their ongoing needs that remain as they grow into adulthood. The future will also be easier for both them and society, if we can take the time to understand them and learn to deal with them positively. They are real human beings. They have a lot to teach us too, if we can just understand them. We need to understand and support the families of these children, who have such great challenges to face. We need to know how to help and then find ways to do it. It pays to insure these children and work on these issues now. We need to push for this in whatever ways we can. It could so easily be your own child. It already is your neighbor.
Here's an interesting little video to start you thinking. Notice the hands running in water segment, because it is eerily similar to the Espinoza Syndrome's method of bringing on a drought, a subject we will have to visit another day...
Did you even know much about autism when you were growing up? Did you know anyone who had it? It was something rarely heard of. I remember seeing a made for TV movie once about a child. That was it. In part the old trend to institutionalize these children may explain some of why that is. Also, today there is so much more information at our disposal. High functioning autistics weren't even recognized as such until later years. Even so, I truly believe that there is a real epidemic going on, and it behooves us to be aware of it and act upon it.
Maybe in part there are more autistic kids because more kids survive than before. That still doesn't explain the numbers today: 1 in 150. Something is going on, and no one yet knows what it is. Is it environmental, nutritional, a fluke of evolution? Is it caused by heredity or vaccinations? There are no definitive answers. Much needs to be done in the way of research.
Another important issue is that many of the therapies that are found to be very beneficial are not covered by most insurances. Just getting a good diagnosis can be very difficult. The biggest shame about this is that the younger it is identified and intervention is put in place, the better the prognosis for the child's development. This is the future of a big chunk of our population. If we don't help them reach their best potential now, to be able to deal with the society they live in, and care for themselves, many who could learn to meet several of these needs will not. We need to figure out better ways to care for their ongoing needs that remain as they grow into adulthood. The future will also be easier for both them and society, if we can take the time to understand them and learn to deal with them positively. They are real human beings. They have a lot to teach us too, if we can just understand them. We need to understand and support the families of these children, who have such great challenges to face. We need to know how to help and then find ways to do it. It pays to insure these children and work on these issues now. We need to push for this in whatever ways we can. It could so easily be your own child. It already is your neighbor.
Here's an interesting little video to start you thinking. Notice the hands running in water segment, because it is eerily similar to the Espinoza Syndrome's method of bringing on a drought, a subject we will have to visit another day...
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