Taking the Awe out of Autism

Experiencing my son's concern about my well-being.  Priceless. Yep, it's the little things in life that make it worthwhile.  Making sure the family is healthy.   Sharing a good meal at dinner.  Watching a favorite TV show with Jacob.  All good stuff.  I've been suffereing from a nasty cold for almost two weeks, and Jacob's seen me feeling stuffy and tired.  Come 9:30 each night, and I've been ready for bed. So, when I was on the computer right before going to sleep, Jacob walks into my office and says "I hope you feel better Mom", it was music to my ears! I've spent so much time working on empathy with Jacob.  Explaining why manners are important.  Insisting  on hearing "please" when he makes a request or "thank you" when I've done something nice for him.  Letting him know my displeasure about something that he may have done or said that wasn't to my liking ....

I'm become somewhat addicted to Facebook as a means of self-expression. When I find interesting articles or sources of information, I like to post it on my Facebook page so I can share with all 257 of my Facebook "friends". I also like to repost on my Facebook page interesting articles from these same friends. Of course, only a handful of these Facebook friends are actual friends. The rest are people that I used to know and have reconnected, I've "befriended" through Facebook or are acquaintances that I've met in actual real-life face-to-face interactions. Hi, nice to meet you. You're on Facebook, great, let's be friends! It's a step up from never having met in person, but it's still pretty artifical in terms of a real friendship. As any parent of a child with an ASD knows, friendships are a precious commodity. I remember I did a lot of facilitating in this area for Jacob when he was young. I enrolled him in social skills classes. I g...

This was my last blog for Hopeful Parents. Enjoy! The lives of parents with children on the autism spectrum are very busy. They spend hours and hours researching and finding the treatments that would be most appropriate for their child. They schedule meetings with doctors and professionals. They spend a lot of money on therapists. They arrange playdates, and they taxi their child to appointments. They hope that what they're doing will eventually prove to be worth the time, money, and energy. This was my life when Jacob was young. Now he's 17 and by all accounts doing well. He started at public high school this year and there have been no issues. His report card came back with good grades. All of his teachers say he's engaged and active in the classroom. So I guess all the hours of driving, researching, and meetings have paid off. Or have they? When I look at Jacob, I see a young man with so much potential. When he puts his mind to something, he'll do it. To make ...

Last night on the DVR, I watched the "Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Concert for Autism Education" hosted by Jon Stewart. It featured featured lots of my favorite funny people and I laughed a lot. The event definitely benefited a wonderful cause. The actual show was taped at the Beacon Theatre in New York, and the program was broadcast on Comedy Central as a telethon so people could call in with donation pledges. It also featured pre-taped segments highlighting serveral schools and programs located across the country that specialized in serving children with autism. All looked great, and it seemed like the people from these schools and programs deeply cared about and were sincere in their efforts to help. A few parents were interviewed as well and they expressed their gratitute that their child was directly benefiting from the help that these programs offered. I know from personal experience how difficult it can be to find the proper educational setting for a...

I contribute a blog entry once a month to the HOPEFUL PARENTS website, and this is what I posted for October. My last blog, Can We All Just Get Along, was not well received by several people in regards to my comment about how parents of higher functioning children don't have an easier time than those of lower functioning children, so I thought I should post it here as well. It's a cold, rainy day in Los Angeles and a typical afternoon in our house. Jacob and I will interact in a bit, but right now, he's in his room and I'm in front of the computer. Jacob loves to stay home, and he couldn't be any more different than me at his age. When I was 17, the last thing I wanted to do was hang out with my mean and emotionally unavailable mother. I had places to go, things to do, people to see. Jacob's favorite place in the world is home, which I have to admit I kind of like. I know where he is, and I know that he is safe. But sometimes I wonder will he ever be ...

One of my recent blogs, What I Believe and What I Know, was featured on the Autism Speaks blog, In Their Own Words. I began my essay with a short description of all the activities that Jacob and I used to enjoy when he was young. My goal was to stress that sharing quality family time together is beneficial for both parents and children. My essay went on to explain my thoughts about having a child with a disability and how I’ve come to understand the many ways in which Jacob's disability has given me the wisdom to see beyond it. Autism Speaks also features the blog on their Facebook page; for my essay, over 500 people hit the "like" button and almost 100 people posted positive reveiws in the comments section on both Facebook and In Their Own Words. “Thank you for sharing”, “”I really connected to your words”, “This is a wonderful testimony”, and “Beautifully described” were just a few. Everyone loved my essay, everyone that is except for one reader named Andy. He wrote,...

There are more moms just like me! Autism - Day by Day: CLEANING-UP ATTITUDES ABOUT AUTISM