Autism Awareness Day

April 2nd is Autism Awareness Day. Please take a moment to educate yourself about this condition that now affects 1 out of every 150 children. That number also includes my ALMOST seven year old nephew Carlton, so if you get a moment today please say a prayer for him and all the other children who struggle with this every single day!!!

World Autism Awareness Day

Autism Speaks

Wikipedia: Autism

My cousin has Asperger's Syndrome and a good friend of mine's son has Autism.

I believe there is some kind of gather in the city today? Or am I wrong?

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Posted by dannisayz

My cousin has Asperger's Syndrome and a good friend of mine's son has Autism.

I believe there is some kind of gather in the city today? Or am I wrong?

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thanks for responding, i am not sure i will have to look that up!

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Posted by Kimbalina

I honestly do not know much about Autisum. Thank you for the links Tilde

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oh I am so happy that you said that - i hope many more people get educated about autism today

its hard when people think that my nephew is just being bad or stubborn bc they dont understand that he has autism. My niece also has Asperger's syndrome which is related to autism. However, she can talk and is VERY bright so people don't understand why she is so socially awkward!

i used to work for a non profit autism foundation - best job ever (i had to leave b/c they didnt pay enough money) but it was an amazing experience and one day i hope to get back into it....there def needs to be more autism awareness - staten island has a really high autism rate and so many children and families are affected by it - i think the stat now is about 1 in every 150 kids has ASD

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Posted by Future Mulligan

i used to work for a non profit autism foundation - best job ever (i had to leave b/c they didnt pay enough money) but it was an amazing experience and one day i hope to get back into it....there def needs to be more autism awareness - staten island has a really high autism rate and so many children and families are affected by it - i think the stat now is about 1 in every 150 kids has ASD

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you're from SI??? me too


eta: NJ has the highest autisim rate in the country.. i wonder if SI's proximity to NJ has something to do with it.. very interesting..

My mother is a teachers aide for autistic children. i've gone to work with her and seen them and how they are in school, some are higher functioning and some arent. Very sad to see.
I wish they would find out how children become autistic

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Posted by Kimbalina

What does Autism start from? Is it genitic?

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no one really knows. some people think it is genetic but the reoccurence rate amongst families is pretty low so i dont know how i feel about that. for example since my nephew has autism i have a 2% higher chance of having a child with autism ( according to one study that i read ) i dont think that is a high enough percentage to assume it is genetic.

Other people think it is enviromental, exposure to mercury, vaccinations - there is no conclusive evidence about any of these theories though. that is what makes it so frustrating, there is no real way to prevent it

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Posted by ant n tilde

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Posted by Kimbalina

What does Autism start from? Is it genitic?

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no one really knows. some people think it is genetic but the reoccurence rate amongst families is pretty low so i dont know how i feel about that. for example since my nephew has autism i have a 2% higher chance of having a child with autism ( according to one study that i read ) i dont think that is a high enough percentage to assume it is genetic.

Other people think it is enviromental, exposure to mercury, vaccinations - there is no conclusive evidence about any of these theories though. that is what makes it so frustrating, there is no real way to prevent it

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Ohhh ok. That is why the S.I and N.J connection may be there-
I feel silly because it is something I really dont have any idea about.

I donate $ every year to this cause and sometimes do the walk if I can!!

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Posted by Future Mulligan

i wish they would find out what causes it - sometimes the child appears to be developing normally and then all of a sudden they just stop and sometimes they even regress.... a lot of the families that belonged to our foundation had more than 1 child affected by autism - like 2 out of their 3 kids had autism, or they had 2 kids and both were affected, and its mostly boys....im not a doctor or expert but i think there has to be a genetic link as well as an environmental thing going on or something to that affect - i have a feeling there are two or more factors and one of them is genetic but thats just my opinion from working with families and children affected

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yes that perfectly explains my family. My nephew was PERFECT. He was almost two years old and he started saying mama, dada, nonno, nonna, duck, dog. . . all normal words. THEN he just STOPPED . . . i swear it happened over night. My mother insisted that he had hearing loss so my sister took him to the doctor who told her 'kids develop at different times, dont worry about it'

now we always complain that my mother is pushy BUT THANK GOD FOR HER in this case. she refused to believe that and she told my sister if she didnt take him for a hearing test that she would take him herself. So, my sister scheduled a hearing test, his hearing was fine BUT even the people there knew something was up and they suggested she go get him tested. Well, she did and he was placed into early intervention immediately. He has been in school since he was two with home therapy as well.

He is still not speaking but I pray every single day that he will one day. He repeats words after you and sometimes if he REALLY wants something and you dont give in he will say what he wants like bread or milk. In other ways he is okay like he can dress himself, go to the bathroom alone, bathe himself with supervision, feed himself. He can point out colors, letters, numbers, animals etc if you say them. . . but he just cant express himself AND he gets into obsessive behaviours and can get over stimulated.

His sister who has Asperger's was developing normally until a few years ago. She is in a regular school and doing great she jsut doesnt know how to interact socially. She also doesnt know how to read emotions so you could be sobbing in front of her and she wouldnt understand that you are sad. . .

sorry this got so long, just sharing my experience - thanks for listening

Thanks for the post! to your nephew!!

I am going to be annoying and bump this so it stays on the first page

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Posted by AR31

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Posted by Future Mulligan

i used to work for a non profit autism foundation - best job ever (i had to leave b/c they didnt pay enough money) but it was an amazing experience and one day i hope to get back into it....there def needs to be more autism awareness - staten island has a really high autism rate and so many children and families are affected by it - i think the stat now is about 1 in every 150 kids has ASD

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you're from SI??? me too


eta: NJ has the highest autisim rate in the country.. i wonder if SI's proximity to NJ has something to do with it.. very interesting..

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actually i had a professor tell us once that the rate in NJ is the highest because they have some of the best schools- which in turn leads to people moving there to get the help that is needed. plus they have some wonderful programs for parents!!! Don't know if he was telling the truth but just thought i would throw that out there haha

But anyway- I have worked with children with autism and am actually getting my masters in special ed/early childhood and a specialty certification in ABA (which is the applied behavior analysis therapy for children with autism) and I will be certified to use that type of therapy in homes with children and parents!!! I am so excited. I love working with children who have autism. It is such a rewarding job!!!!

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Posted by ant n tilde

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Posted by Kimbalina

What does Autism start from? Is it genitic?

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no one really knows. some people think it is genetic but the reoccurence rate amongst families is pretty low so i dont know how i feel about that. for example since my nephew has autism i have a 2% higher chance of having a child with autism ( according to one study that i read ) i dont think that is a high enough percentage to assume it is genetic.

Other people think it is enviromental, exposure to mercury, vaccinations - there is no conclusive evidence about any of these theories though. that is what makes it so frustrating, there is no real way to prevent it

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yeah there are so many therories....they first thought back in the 50's-70's it was because of what they called 'refrigerator mothers' where the mothers were so cold to their children and did not show them enough affection- well that was throw out the window when they started blaming parents...

then people believe it is due to vaccinations that are given when the child is younger. my mom is a nurse and she has a few new mom's that comce in her office and refuse to give their babies some of the shots because of a fear of autism. but many studies show it is not really correlated.

but it is weird you can have a faternal twins one has autism and the other doesn't but then if you have identical i have seen iddentical twins where they both had autism and i have seen identical twins where only one of the children had autism

i work with someone who has 3 boys with autism...one very severe and one on the higher end of the spectrum. it is soo interesting like why did all 3 of his sons have it?!

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Posted by ant n tilde

I am going to be annoying and bump this so it stays on the first page

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tilde thank you for posting this...we were talking about it in class last night and i beleive there is a walk or something in the city for it today

but yes def bump it, i am so interested about this and know alot...i mean i am no doctor but i have taken 5 courses on it already and worked first hand with about 15 different children with autism!!! i LOVE learning about it and helping the children who have it

i am sorry tilde about your nephew but thankfully he is getting the support he needs and your sister is such a strong woman for having to handle the struggles day in and day out of helping her son improve in everyday things and more!!! i hope for the best with your family!!!