Parenting Is An Adventure By Discovering Blake

“Work to view my autism as a different ability rather than a disability. Look past what you may see as limitations and see the gifts autism has given me…Be my advocate, be my friend, and we’ll see just how far we can go” –Ellen Botbohm, author of Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew.

Autism, a developmental disorder is becoming widely diagnosed here in the U.S. and throughout the world affecting children in all different types of backgrounds. From children living in rural or urban, rich or poor. Currently there are many speculations and superstitions as to the causes for developing autism but science has no clear evidence as to why autism affects certain people and not others, autism can greatly affect the families and its patients for their entire lives. Most of you do not know that I have twin younger brothers with Autism. Before this speech, I had no clue what autism really was. Through my research I am now able to relay this information to you. Today I want to talk about Autism. The three things I will be speaking about is what is Autism? How does autism affect the family and how does autism affect people who have it?

The Case of Temple Grandin paints a picture of a young woman’s determination and hard work while struggling with autism during a time when the disorder was unknown. This case discusses Grandin’s challenges, early diagnosis, growth and development in school, and support from her mother. Temple Grandin could not speak like the other children at the age of two, so because doctors could not find any physical issues she had been subsequently labeled as brain-damaged. To communicate with others, she would throw tantrums and scream. She could speak by three and a half years old with the help of speech therapy. A few years later at the age of five, Grandin was diagnosed with autism so her mother worked with her 30

The first three years of a child’s life is the most important and central time for the brain’s development. Autism is a disorder that can be diagnosed during the infant or toddler stage. Children can be diagnosed with autism by having different impairments such as social interaction, pattern of behavior, eye contact and speech impairment. Having the child being diagnosed with ASD can change a parent’s life view. Parents can learn different things in order to help their child. Parents will be provided by health providers different treatment, different placement in education and knowing about the different risk factor to make a difference for their autistic child now and in the future.

“Don’t think that there is a different, better child ‘hiding’ behind the autism. This is your child. Love the child in front of you. Encourage his strengths, celebrate his quirks, and improve his weaknesses, the way you would with any child. You may have to work harder on some of this, but that’s the goal,” Claire Scovell LaZebnik wrote of living with a child who has autism. Autism has been made to look like a grand epidemic. Autism is nothing of the kind. There are plenty of people with autism that are high-functioning and can live on their own, and autism is made to seem like a bigger deal than it is. Many would argue that medicines are needed to treat autism, that autism needs to be ended. There is always a better way.

When it comes to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), many people don't understand what the disability is or how children who suffer from ASD live their everyday lives. “Autism is a serious nuerodevelopmental disorder that impairs the ability to communicate and interact.” (Psychology Today, 2015). Usually, autism is diagnosed in children from as early as the age of 2 and symptoms can impact individuals throughout their lifespan. Common symptoms of autism include impaired social interactions, impaired verbal and nonverbal communication, problems processing information from the senses, and restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior. Anxiety is also common among children with ASD, and parents of children with ASD are more likely

Kate describes that as a mom of a son with autism has to be a challenge and she doesn’t want to picture a perfect story like other mothers due and it’s not because she doesn’t love or is the perfect mother but because she wants people to really understand and read what it’s true. As her son grows and the year pass she post on her blog many stuff up and downs that happens with her family. She explains that there are 67 children that are diagnosed with autism per day. That it’s one child every twenty minutes. By her blog she wants people to really understand the importance of autism and how her life really

Every single day is a struggle for an autistic child and his or her family. Autism affects all aspects of a child’s life from their ability to show affection to their family to being able to do simple tasks such as communicating and thinking in ways that we take for granted. Autism is defined as a developmental disability in which children experience abnormalities in social functioning, language, often act in puzzling ways, and usually appears before the age of three (Mash &Wolfe, 2010). Although the exact causes of autism are unknown there does seem to be a strong genetic component. Having a child or family member with autism is a constant battle of emotion and frustration. Everyone wants to help the people they love when they have

In NeuroTribes, the ward-winning science journalist Steve Silberman changes the societal conversation about autism with a groundbreaking and comprehensive history of this much-talked-about but little-understood condition. The book reveals a perfect storm that led to the sudden increase in diagnosis beginning in the 1990s. It describes how parents were bombarded with conflicting and misleading information on the causes and potential cures of the disease. It also describes how to embrace the concept

It was the goal of this case study to partner with Isabella’s family to address their concerns and implement effective strategies into their lifestyle to support positive development. Children who exhibit unique and sometimes thought of as, challenging needs, is often concerning for any parent. All children have unique strengths and weaknesses across their growth and development. Regardless of whether Isabella’s developmental differences indicate that she is or is not in fact Autistic, her parent’s decision for early intervention was absolutely crucial for improving Isabella’s abilities. The evaluation of this case study allowed more recognition of the various strengths of Isabella’s personal characteristics, in addition to, acknowledging the

The fact that Miller has only sampled ‘dozens of parents’ indicates that the so-called ‘study’ lacks generality, as the sample size is small and cannot be related to the greater public body (http://www.suzymiller.com/autism-intention-program-1/). These testimonials also highlight the high level of subjectivity throughout this program, as the results given are from parents who have undergone this program and Miller has the ability to choose what results she displays to the world (http://www.suzymiller.com/autism-intention-program-1/). Subjectivity is also present in the self-report methods used to check family progression. Miller uses the ATEC (Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist) and the ZUNG (Self-rating Depression Scale) to rate the ‘positive results’, which could include bias and misjudgment of one’s situation, therefore skewing the results

A pilot study by McLeod (1999) over three years, with a sample of eight adults, using case studies and both qualitative and quantitative methods of research (including questionnaires, interviews and follow-up) described parents of individuals on the Autism spectrum, as ‘the

This book review written by parent Gloria Doty, addresses the parenting and emotional challenges associated with Gloria’s youngest daughter Kalisha. Autism spectrum disorder specifically Asperger and how parenting is impacted by the emotional dissonance, mental and physical components of the disorder. Doty, presents early diagnosis and treatment as fundamental towards developing functional relationship with her daughter.

William Blake is an author best known for the ballads he has composed in one of his books The Songs of Innocence and Experience, this includes “The Chimney Sweeper.” During the Fifteenth Century, people built fires daily in order to cook food and keep warm. This causes a build up of soot and ash within chimneys. These chimneys were often cleaned by children small enough to fit down inside the narrow brick structures. The problems that arose from kids doing this have a wide range of undesirable effects that often lead to an early death. These children only had the comfort of religion when met with the possibility of death. William Blake, seeing the problem with this, uses his skills with words to criticize the use of child labor in his time

In being a reliable fixture in their child's life, the parent creates a sense of safety for their child. The anecdote recounted above is that of real mother who strives to create a sense of predictability for her daughter after a day of fluctuations. She has witnessed her daughter anchoring herself to that which remains consistent and has adjusted pieces of her life so the child could feel a sense of predictability amidst a day of fluctuation. Sacrifice is a quintessential aspect of parenting any child, however, with an autistic child, the level of sacrifice is ultimately more demanding. In many cases the child will never be completely independent: the role that a parent plays in looking after their child will extend well into the child’s adult years.