News

Navigating through the hospital, education and community relationships was difficult to say the least.  I learned to always ask questions.  Access to school systems and understanding the process, as a mother of a child with autism and five other children was challenging.  I found it very difficult to understand autism, let alone discover all the options available to parents to help them along the path.  I would try new and innovative tools, though the doctors warned me that the studies weren’t complete yet and I was taking a my chances.  I figured that Jonny would be grown by the time the studies were finished, so I tried them anyway.

One such intervention was the DAVID machine, which is piece of equipment that has light and tones and changes your brainwaves.  During the 6 week period we monitored his use, his eye contact improved, he became more social, less echolaliac and his communication improved.  I then began to think of a way other parents and professionals could access similar information, offering a wide variety of choices so they could make more informed decisions about the treatment for their children.  I didn’t leave any rock unturned.  This led to the development of “The Official Autism 101 Manual” with 44 top experts, caregivers and parents which won the Independent Publishers Book Gold Medal in New York this month!

The Ultimate Resource – The Official Autism 101 Manual

Have you ever wondered what the non-verbal person with autism is thinking or have you ever been too afraid to talk to the person in the wheelchair because you don’t know what to say? Well I have! But Mr. “blunt” Jonny doesn’t hold any punches. When I signed Jonny up for football when he was in Jr. High School, his coach was in a wheelchair from a truck roll-over. When Jonny finally met the coach face to face the first thing out of his mouth was “Hey what happened to you? Did you fall and slip in the bathtub or something? The Coach Dave nearly fell out of his wheelchair because no one had ever dared to even mention his condition. We laughed. We should all learn to adopt some of Jonny’s clarity, honesty and wisdom in our approach to special needs people.

And I keep learning more every day. There is no instruction manual for being a special-needs mom. Truly, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

(continued) No sooner than Mrs Spaulding called on my son, did the words shoot out of his mouth. “Mrs Spaulding, he said” “I think this is boring!” I knew in my heart that he was just being truthful, but ohhhh the glares I got from the other parents, and of course Mrs. Spaulding. “You know young man, she scolded, that was very disrespectful”. How could I explain his autism in this desperate situation to everyone that was there? I felt like grabbing his hand and leaving, but I hung in there.
After the moment cleared, and the air seemed to settle down, once again his hand flew in the air. Mrs Spaulding, “What kind of dinosaur is it?” he asked in regard to her book? Thank God! I was so relieved he could also ask something that was appropriate. After the class was dismissed and the library event had come to a close, I took Jonny by the hand to apologize to Mrs Spaulding, trying to explain to him that while he may have been bored, saying it out loud still probably hurt Mrs Spaulding’s feelings.

(To be Continued)

(Continued)
Of course we were laughing harder than they were! Everything that could and would have gone wrong, did, but that was somehow okay. Jonny was accepted for who he was and is. A child with autism. When their song was over, his classmates filed off the stage as they had rehearsed, but not my Jonny. He was still doing his “thing” weaving in and out of the kids having a grand old time and the audience applause became very loud. Jonny all of the sudden became very aware of the audience, walked out to center stage and shouted at the top of his lungs. “Spank you, spank you very much!” and bowed. Afterwards, Caraly pointed out that maybe he had some sensory issues and the clothes were probably bothering him which is why he was acting out. From then on I dressed him in more comfortable clothes for him to wear, especially before going on stage! Sometimes as parents the obvious is oblivious to us and we miss it. Does anyone else ever have situations like these happen with their autistic children?

Certainly, these are stories to cherish, as we all grow in knowing what works for our children and what doesn’t!