The Truth about Autism
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism
A couple big news stories in the world of autism have parents frustrated once again.
First, the infamous Dr. Wakefield was stripped of his license by Britain’s medical council, and then later in the week Reuters published an article suggesting that early intervention may not really make a difference when treating children with autism.
Which is in direct contrast to the only one absolute we’ve ever had… that your best hope is to intervene early.
Early. Early. Early.
So parents everywhere are reacting in anger, throwing emotionally charged adjectives in support of their personal intervention strategies, and pediatricians everywhere can be a little more smug once again, repressing those feeling of guilt that had sneaked in after failing to diagnose so many children earlier than they did.
Here’s the thing… these studies must be done. Their results must be published.
Tags: Autism, original illustration, Parenting
Six Benefits of LEGO Play for Children with Autism
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism, Kids, Parenting
When my kids were finally old enough for LEGOs, I was glad.
Pretty much everything about LEGO is awesome.
What was interesting (though not totally surprising) was how beneficial LEGO play seemed to be for my 6-year-old who has autism.
Interestingly enough, some serious studies are now being done to develop LEGO-based therapy for children with autism.
It makes a lot of sense:
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Autism, kids, lego, original photo
The Real Wolverine
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism
Received an article today about Autism in the workplace.
How certain behavioral skills characteristic of individuals with (high-functioning) autism may make them more adept at particular occupations than the rest of us, and how some new companies and non-profits are providing training to foster the strengths of these individuals by providing specialized training with their unique minds in mind.
At first it seems fantastic.
Tags: Autism, nbc, original illustration
Inclusive Education
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism
Our son has Autism.
This fall, he transitioned from an ECP (early childhood special ed) classroom to a typical Kindergarten class.
We did so for a variety of reasons, one of which is the theory that Inclusive Education is beneficial for both the special-needs student and his classmates.
PBS released a really great article about this today.
We never really doubted that inclusion is best… the real question is…
are the public schools equipped for inclusive education?
When our son’s Kindergarten teacher already has 23 children to not only maintain, but to guide, teach and grow… how can she be expected to fully serve my son?
It doesn’t matter how great of a teacher you are, that order is just too high…
When everyone knows it is best… why does my wife have to fight through blood, sweat and tears to get him the aid that he is entitled? (any aid… even one without ASD training)
Of course it’s about money… the scary thing is that with Autism rising and school funding on the decline the future looks very bleak for any possibility that the public schools will be able to meet the needs of their communities.
I guess it’s a good thing that I believe in prayer… because I don’t know what else to do from here on out.
Tags: Autism, original photo
Zev on Amazing Race
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism, Parenting, TV
Individuals on the Autism Spectrum have never had a voice in the media.
Of course there’s Rain Man (everyone’s first reply when I say “my son has Autism”)…
And the occasional savant on 60 Minutes or something… (which of course results in everyone’s second reply “so is he super good at math or the piano or something?”)
And that is about it.
There’s never been occasion in media where a character with Autism was actually a person… you know what I mean?
That is why I consider this season’s Amazing Race to be groundbreaking…
Because Zev Glassenberg is someone to watch.
As far as I can tell he is the first person ever in popular media to represent individuals with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.
While watching this weeks episode…
I chuckled knowingly when he’s concerned about getting his shoes wet while traveling through knee-deep floods in Vietnam…
and I felt so proud… like he was my own son… when he masterfully shepherded a flock of ducks during one competition…
and gave his jacket to a man who had none…
and my heart cheered when his team came in 2nd at the finish line for that leg of the race…
But the thing that really gets me emotional…
is that he’s got a friend.
a real friend.
Because I know I’m in for a lot of heartbreak over the next decade as I try to watch my son relate to his peers… and none of them will really understand him.
But seeing Zev with his buddy Justin gives me hope… just a little hope… that someday my boy can have a friend that understands him and appreciates him the way I do…
a friend who loves his sense of humor and is humbled by his unselfish spirit and touched by his sweet personality and…..
You can follow Zev and Justin on the race via their webpage (which is mostly twitter status updates of funny stuff Zev says on the show)
Tags: amazing race, aspergers, Autism, tv
First Day of School
Posted by Troy | Filed under Autism, Parenting
Sometimes I’m surprised to hear parents excited to send their kids back to school… like having them around is a huge pain that they’d just as soon avoid.
I get that kids are a lot of work and they definitely have a way of wearing your nerves quite thin…
I’d still rather be around them most of the time than not…
My son went to his first day of kindergarten this past week.
It was tough enough with our oldest… we cried the whole walk home from dropping her off for the first time.
But this time is different.
Because he has autism, we have no idea what to expect.
Reassurance comes from friends in the form of “Oh, he’ll be OK… do great… etc.”
Which is more than likely true, but not really the issue.
We don’t want him to be OK.
We want him to get the most out of each day.
to excel…
to fly…
Will dropping him in the hands of an overloaded public school teacher give him that opportunity?
Would keeping him home with mom?
Nobody knows, and that’s just the thing… at some point you have to make a decision…
at some point you have to have faith.
Tags: Autism, Faith, original photo, Parenting, school
