Autism is a developmental disorder many people do not fully understand.  There are people who spend each and every day looking for answers to unlock the puzzle of Autism who do not fully understand what causes it.  The response I get from people when I say 'Autism' are commonly linked to their limited knowledge of what is referred to as 'classic autism' or that was portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in Rainman.  The Autism we know that has touched our loved ones is not always as severe or impairing as that portrayal.

There is a reason it is called Autistic Spectrum Disorder.  It can range in severity from a mildly affected person who is high functioning, you could not discriminate from other 'typical' children and then there are people who are more severely affected with whom even communication may be difficult.

To date there is no known cause or no known cure, but we are reassured that much is being done in the way of research for links to the cause.  There are some people who claim an improved diet in which gluten is removed or reduced shows substantial improvement, while others claim magnesium and B6 has 'cured' their children.  Since there is no real evidence at this time on either of these options, it is at the parent's (and hopefully their specialist's) discretion for experimentation.

My life was touched by Autism when my first born child entered into my life.  He was the happiest child I ever knew, friendly and very intelligent.  As he grew, my love for him increased along with my awareness that he had some 'quirky' behaviors.  I think what stood out the most was that while others close to him felt he was intentionally and independently 'ignoring' me, I felt there was more to be known.  My husband and I requested an early childhood assessment at 16 months of age and were already waiting for our appointment with a specialist.  He was diagnosed with a communicative disorder at first and he received one hour of speech weekly.  I would ask the speech therapist to show me what to do with him daily and my husband and I worked with him daily.

He made tremendous improvement, but the 'quirks' still remained.  One of his strongest assets, next to his exuberant personality was his advanced intellect.  I had never known a child to know the complete alphabet at age 2 (both upper and lower case), and by random letter recognition, and knowledge of all the shapes, colors and numbers.  It became more apparent when he was around his peers that he was intellectually advanced.  His desire to learn was so strong that I actually believed it is one of the things that has helped him the most in progressing so well.  This along with his friendly personality has helped him sharpen skills he might other struggle with such as social interactions and speech.

I am convinced that it was through much prayer and work with my son that he has reached the outstanding level of success he has today.  When people ask me why I do what I do, since it does not directly help my son,  I simply tell them it my responsibility to pass on what I have found to help others who may not know what to do or where to start.

There is no mistake - I have the two wonderful children God meant for me to have- I love them both more than words can describe.  I would not trade my son who has autism for all the 'typical' children in the world.  He is my teacher, rather they are my teachers.  They are helping me to reach success as a person and a mother with their love.  They are amazing - and I am in awe of their presence each new day.
Thank you God - My cup runneth over with blessings.

Our Children, Our Work - Their Lives,
Susan