THIS IS THE PLACE LOL! Todd runs the joint. No cussin' although I did recently use s*** lol. Enjoy, we are a fun bunch with strong shoulders to cry on!!

Today we decided to back off the "do this", clap hands program. We'll go back and try it again in the future. So we introduced a different "do this" and working on hand eye coordination. He caught on right away. He is such a trooper. It amazes me how kids with autism handle stucture so much better than others. I think personally it's easier to be more strict or whats a better word? asking more? as a therapist than it is for a parent, I think "burn out" probably plays a huge part. I know that when I go to a home for therapy lesson its some times a nice little break for the parents. 

Cindy usually does the "welcome newbies" blog post now and then, but she's a facebooker now. :)

Just wanted to welcome everyone to the site. We are up to almost 1300 users right now. So exciting! Keep postin' and commenting on other people's stuff. 

Let me know if there's anything I can do to make your stay here more enjoyable.

This is my bugaboo.  Michael has been doing this for some time now, God love him.  I am just not allowed to take my hair out of the scrunchie, change scrunchies, take my glasses off...The boy follows me around holding the hair tie and ranting at me.  If I have just washed my hair, he grabs the towell on my head and pulls on it till it comes off my head.  He stands on the potty with my hair tie, chanting and cussing me out autism style.  He just holds that tie out to me and rants until I just put the darn thing in.  And taking my glasses off is a huge no no no no....he squeals until I put them back on.  I know it is because it is what he is used to, cause I always put my hair up and can't see without my specs, but lordy lordy he goes on so.  And I was just thinking about cutting my hair several inches...the kid will freak....geesh.

 Do your kids have things about what you wear or how you do something that they do not like you changing?  Tell me about them.

Hello everyone!

My name is Andrea (located in Montreal).  I'm Mom to 4 kids...Alex, who is 3, is autistic.  We're still waiting to get his diagnosis (been a year now), our medical system just doesn't have the resources for the increased demand! So we've spent the last year trying different therapies, going to tons of seminars, courses, etc and reading like crazy!  and it's working, I see a huge improvement in my son.  What's working for us now is Padovan(works on creating more links between neurons...I'm probably not explaning it properly, but it works for us!), music therapy, floor/play time and just plain being outdoors as much as possible.  What I'd like to learn about now is nutrition (this is an issue for us, not many things that he'll eat!) So off to another seminar at my local library tonight!

I'm looking forward to reading what's working for all the other parents out there...particularly, how do you manage to make time for yourselves(without feeling guilty?) My head knows that I need to care for myself, that a burned-out Mommy can't help anyone, but I noticed that the only time I really relax is when he's in therapy-I know for that 50 minutes that there is nothing else I should be doing for him.

: )

We are using some sign language with our little guy.  He has been known to actually sign for more...when we really try to not let him have what he wants till he indicates it, somehow, then he either says MMMMMMM or puts his hands together trying to sign more.  He recognizes other signs, knows what they mean but does not do them himself yet.  He knows All Done, Want, Swing...has sign language helped any of you, in the past or present?  Does your child sign?  Michael drags me a lot to what he wants still, but he is still little and all this is still new.  I am just curious if sign language was something others here are using or did use until words came out more.

Today was another good day. He tends to struggle most with sharing (expected) and repeating. When asking him to "do this", I clap my hands and he is to repeat. HOH, is the technique I use.So now he brings his arms to me to do the HOH so he gets praised. Opps! Good Try! :) He'll get it, it will be so exciting when he does. He has not had any more tantrums and accepts the therapy room great. I love seeing the progress as we go through therapy. Mom even says she has noticed so much impovement since we started not even a week ago. Today at "playtime" I pulled him around the floor while he was wrapped up in a blanket, we had so much fun. That also is a great stimuli activity which, most of you probably already know. Getting late and again I am exhausted. Will blog agian sometime this week!

Vent Vent Vent I feel better already. Incredibly stressfull past two days. My kids are nuts! I am nuts!I think I better get more organized. I wonder if you guys plan out therapy time that you do on your own, brushing, sensory input times or if you just wing it. What works best for you? I am a planner, usually,but these past few days I have been winging it and I suck at it. My theory was that I needed to relax a bit and get some spontaniety in my life and in my kids lives...however I would have to say that I got lazy when things were not planned out. Now I do not plan our day minute by minute...I am not that anal...pardon me for that...I do plan like by sections early am wake up mid morning snack sensory time before lunch etc.....But when I did not plan it out in my head the night before I ended up getting utterly distracted and not doing much but sneaking off to the computer. So much for winging it...I need discipline and schedule for myself so I guess it is only natural to ask it it of the kiddos. What do you guys do? Do you schedule yourself or just do what feels right to do when it comes to fitting in the necessary activities where your child is concerned?

Ok, since I have a newly diagnosed child and some of you have been at this a lot longer than me....Are there phases with your kids?  Are there periods of time where they are receptive, more responsive, maybe more verbal, less rigid in routine and play settings and then times when they are more in themselves, self soothing and not so interested in therapies and learning...I mean like more than just a good day here and then a bad day the next...like a week or so where they are different from the next...does this make sense.  Maybe I am not sure what I am asking here.  I know all kids have ups and downs...I mean is it a tendancy of autism to sometimes be more prevalent and then change and for some time be not so obvious?  Are there cycles, maybe that's more what I mean...oh shoot...I can't get it out right.  I am going to try to put it down on paper first, get it right in my head and try blogging about it later.

There is a lot of talent on this site...lots of intelligence, lots of good writing....maybe there is a book in the making right here....a team effort, a collaboration of wonderful people who have humor and strength and knowledge and great insight into the everyday life of having a special needs child..hhmm...just throwing it out there for you all to mull over...lots of talent, lots of talent...

Just blogging to lift my soul this morning...We knew Kaylee had some delays, so we sent her to get tested for our special school district 3 year old program  just like Michael....and now they tell me that they really want me to get her into First Steps (cut off is 3 yrs. or school year starts  my twins are 3 in aug) program for the rest of the time till school starts.  So, Mickey and I talked it over and figured we better do it.  So, we are going to get Kaylee tested by First Steps (you have to have at least a 50% delay in tested areas...apparently they think she has this) this next week and before you know it we will just be having therapists in and out of here just about every day of the week...It is cool.  I love these people and what they do for my spirits and for my kids...they play with them all so even Alex gets some learning time.  It doesn't make me sad, but poor Daddy.  Not his baby girl...he is really having a hard time with it, admitting that she needs more than what we thought...It was a big battle to let him get her tested for SSDistrict...but he relented, he saw the benefit and the rightness of doing this testing and helping our baby girl...He was so pathetic about it....men kill me about their little girls...he gets so out of whack about Kaylee and our teenager Liana...they really mess with his emotions...I comfort him when he is in the room....and then I go around the corner and have to giggle.  These girls can work their daddy.  I giggle because I was a well versed daddy's girl myself.  I guess I have trained my girls well, huh, on how to wrap daddy all around your finger.  lol

My brother is severely autistic and is nonverbal.  He is in his late 20s now and I am in my early 30s.  I fear the future and trying to make plans for it, where can I live what kind of work can I find, can I actually settle anywhere but my hometown knowing that at some point he will be under my care.  I love my brother and am willing to find my niche here but its been difficult recently.  I went to grad school to study autism to better understand it and find the cause for it.  The world of research disillusioned me and the realities of the complexity of this disorder/disease were mindboggling.  The other thing that discouraged me was the lack of interest in collaboration and true discussion of different research paths.  As much as we know about autism and we do know much more than we ever did we still don't' know the most basic answer.......what causes it.  There are theories but nothing that has been definitively proven.  I finished grad school and came back home to friends and loved ones and walked away from researching autism.  I just didn't know if I was ready to go back to it.  Since my brother was diagnosed all I ever wanted was to figure out what happened and is there any way to bring him back.  In the 80s we weren't given a lot of options or therapies, not like what they have now.  We just tried to keep him happy and take care of him the best we could.  Growing up my world was all about autism, and now I've made my 20s about it as well.  Now I'm thinking of going back into the research world but I'm afraid that I'll just be discouraged again, even though in reality this is all I really know.

My son is 12 years old, with Aspergers Syndrome/ADHD, living in San Antonio, Tx.  It is my desire to find him some friends in the area that are Aspies just as he is perhaps with the same interests and level of function. He is highly functional, with a sincere heart to make friends.  He has a tendency to have trouble making friends due to his unique and inquisitive nature. If I am describing your child, please let me know. I would be very interested in support groups for him and myself.  Thank you for your time.

You did not even knock  No announcement was made  Just in you came and said "I am here to stay."  You are a part of our family now  Our newest member we sometimes hesitate to introduce  You are not shy  You are in fact quite bold  You are in lots of people's lives, young and the old  You are a thief of dreams A manipulator, who who schemes  You take away voices and rob us of choices  But now more of us are on to you  We are not enduring and coping or sitting around moping  So, we invite you now to stay on here, rest up while you can  You will need your strength  Because we are stronger than you think  And day by day  Trial by trial  With hope and faith we unite  We will manage our lives with grace and skill no matter what kind of tricks you try pull

Brandon's Window--A Grandmother's Documentary of Reversing Autism Naturally.

There are over 60 videos of Brandon's amazing progress of reversing from autism using natural methods.  For more information go to www.brandonswindow.com and get direct links correlating videos and websites of Brandon's amazing progress of reversing from autism naturally. (More videos will be posted in the future.)

Ok, so Alex will be one in on the 9th.  Taking the formula away is just around the corner.  Tell me your thoughts and I promise to still think for myself, guys, but input please on putting him on milk.  Alex has passed all his milestones, done well on his Parents as Teachers testing...no signs of autism...but I am just wondering aloud here, if Michael's autism did not show up till later and milk is an issue with him and Kaylee...(Not ever with my older two interestingly)..hhmm to do the milk thing or not is on my mind.  Thoughts?

You can laugh at me, it's ok. 

I thought that this article on Vitamin D deficiency and autism was interesting:-

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=vitamin-d-and-autism

particularly after reading that Vitamin D deficiency is on the rise in the US (see also http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=vitamin-d-deficiency-united-states).

 Obviously more research is needed into Vitamin D and autism, but it's an interesting theory.I've blogged about it on http://www.newautismcure.com/blog.

It was a good meeting.  Our family service coordinator came to our speech therapy session this morning to get some updates.  We all agree that Michael can have Sally come once a week now instead of every other week.  So, now he will get speech twice a week.  He leaves once a week with his daddy and goes to the hospital's child dev. center for speech.  More company for me, so I do not mind.  My kids were all insane.  Michael bit Kaylee.  Kaylee threw like 6 huge tantrums and head butted Miss Julie.  Alex, our baby was the one who behaved..hee hee...gotta love two year olds.  What noise!  These ladies are great.  They just sail through all the noise and move on to the next activity.  They are moms too, so they know all about the fits and the noise.  It was crazy, but we made it through the hour and a half.  As soon as they left I put Dora on and my house fell silent.  Sometimes quiet, even if it comes from the idiot box on the wall is golden.

http://www.wfrv.com/content/health/healthwatch/story/Some-doctors-are-nervous-about-diagnosing-mental/ZNtQZOkFNk61pE3Lc-AVIw.cspx

This answers a lot of questions.

I am a newly employed DSP (Direct Support Person) for a company which provides assistance to adults with various disabilities.  I have been assigned to a 45yr old adult male diagnosed with autism and mild retardation.   He does not engage in conversation for the most part except to ask questions.  When he questions, he will usually repeat my answer in a questioning manner - I will acknowledge he is correct - and he will again ask for assurance regarding my answer.  This usually goes on for several minutes.  I am seeking advise on a better way to assure him of my answer.  Maybe I should write it down for him?

GB

http://www.child-autism-parent-cafe.com/why-do-women-cry.html

In light of all the dramatic changes in my son since we took the milk and a lot of the gluten away....I have realized that I was poisoning my son.  It has hit me hard today.  Guilt is swamping me, making me drag my feet and hang my head in shame of my ignorance.  If I had known milk would make so many of these autistic behaviors worsen, if I had known at age 15 months that putting him on milk was going to speed up the game autism plays with our children....oh dear god....What kind of mom doesn't see this sort of thing?  I was with him 24 hours a day and did not know that milk was making it all worse for him.  If I had never given him milk would the autism still taken his speech..that's what I keep thinking, if I never put him on the milk, maybe he would still have all his words.  This is a dreadful way to feel.  I need to work through these horrible feelings of guilt and anguish.  It is helping to write it out here, but this is not a good day.  This is a day of great anguish for me.  What else am I missing?  What else am I not seeing that is right in front of my face...what kind of mom am I?

So, just to update my painstaking efforts to get Michael's hair cut...lots of hairs cut because he has my thick and fast growing hair...We attempted to use the clippers...all he wanted to do was try his darndest to get it in his mouth.  He likes to try to put the vacuum hose in his mouth too when it's on...I guess he likes the vibrations it creates.  So, we tried to hold him down and he went nutty, very loudly protesting.  So....I am going to try again in a few days.  I think I stressed him out enough for now.  I am not giving up, I may just have to resort to the way I got it done last time...let him have that vacuum hose to have a hay day with and clip him while he is busy exploring it...It just takes more time, a lot of noise because you have to of course have the thing turned on, and I only get one hand to cut hair with so I can keep him from putting it in his mouth.  His granpa says it scares him to death that I do this because it would take one second of me not being on the ball for him to suck his eyeballs out.  Nice thought.

Try Try again..that's the way to get it done.

I think the part of Michael's Autism that I feel is the least fair is he cannot seem to understand some people are bad and will hurt you. That they lie. And when it comes from somebody who is supposed to be there always and love you how do you endure seeing your child go on believing a lie, knowing soon it will tear their world apart?

 How do we teach them that somebody could hurt them. Michael loves so purely and unconditionally. And it breaks my heart to see somebody who should but won't step up to the plate...

David has one small chance before I turn him away and ruin it all. I never thought saying its over would hurt so bad. I always thought it would be a final frustration and relief, but my heart breaks for Michael... He knows fathers love their sons, he knows a family is a mom dad and child. But he doesn't understand why his family is not like this.

I guess maybe its better to believe the best in everybody and not know how cruel the world can be. Part of me wishes for that now. I wish I could be as forgiving as my wonderful son. 

I just need to get this down to look at for myself.  This action of taking away Michael's milk has literally began a transformation in my son.  I am almost dumbfounded at the difference in him.  There has been no toe walking this entire week unless he did it when I was not looking.  He has been looking at a photo album of him and his twin when they were babies.  He is pointing at each photo and saying his own sweet buy recognizable version of each of their names.  He is saying car and pointing at a car in a book.  He has been saying bye to family when they leave.  Is it possible that eliminating the milk has  done all of this?  Is it really possible?

I took Michael to the pond yesterday for a little photo shoot. I got a picture of my niece in the mail and realized I really need to send out some pictures of Michael. Well his professional pictures are great but there are not really enough to share with EVERYBODY who may want one. So I thought lets work on my photography habit and take a few myself that I can send out. Michael did really well. He got distracted and did not want to always look at the camera, but at least there were not too many ducks there to distract. I let him pick some of the spots for pictures too. Like the dock, the rock, a tree ect.

It still feels weid taking him to the same place he was conceived.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/04/23/eveningnews/main4965041.shtml?tag=main_home_storiesBySection

please work...

This story is pretty inspiring.  Parents really going all out.  Of course it took money to do it...but I am going to try and get his book...looks like a good read.  Anyone out there use animal contact with their kids for therapy?  I love the sheer joy on this kid's face.  I like that the parents are not out there saying horseback riding cured their son.  They are just sharing a story about what came to them to help him.  Let me know what you think.

I am wondering what you guys know about biomedics. I am reading a lot, but thought I would find out what you guys know. I want the good and the bad so don't hold back if you have a thought.

AutismFreeZone is looking for ways to be more effective on local levels.  One of the things they are doing on their website is a sort of FreeCycle style place where you can given and receive free items within the autism community.  It had some trouble getting launched because people were having to mail things to one another.  That's why they decided to try breaking things down into smaller regions.  If you would like to be part of this effort, check out AutismFreeZone.   I am going to be the moderator for the San Diego area.

I really didn't know what to expect today from my new client. Yesterday he got just so much thrown at him. (No, not literally!) What if anything did he retain? I showed up at my scheduled time and he was just finishing his lunch and bouncing around the livingroom furniture. As I approached him he really could have cared less. I engaged in "tickle time" and tried to get a pillow fight going with him and then the giggles came! I played "tickle time" for about 5 minutes and asked him if he would come and play with me in the "playroom". I didn't expect him to react to me and I was correct. I carried him in the playroom and sat him on the floor, shut the door for privacy and began to work on puzzles. I thing we are working on his repitition, and having to have repetitive movements when playing. I would place a piece of the puzzle in place, he would try and take it off, I kept my hand there, he tried again, then he whinned for a short second and grabbed another piece! Yea! The reason for this is to try and prepare him for early childhood and interacting with other kids. Him learning to share and give in to the obsessive repitition is a great start. He did try sneaking out on me 2x's. Good thing I am still fast on me feet! He is quick!

"Table Time Therapy"- This is where he sits at the table with me and we have very short programs to start out with. Our goal is to have him repeat a movement, match up an item with another, or pick out a picture.  read more »

I am curious about anyone else's issues with haircuts for your child.  Michael will not tolerate them.  I can not take him anywhere to cut his hair because he is not going to let a stranger touch his hair.  We have no issues with hair washing whatsoever.  But he sees the scissors and gets away from me fast.  So, I have tried to do it when he is asleep and that's a joke because he wakes up after I have worked so hard to get him asleep.  It's messy too.  I have managed a couple of trims by letting him play around with the vacuum hose while it's on, me holding it too to keep him from sucking out his tongue or eyeballs...but one handed hair cuts are tricky.  SO..anyone have a method they use that I could try?

Does anyone use music therapy with their child?  We just started with the cd's Michael's Occupation Therapist lends us.  The music is from Vital Sounds.  We have been doing it about a month, an hour each day, 30 minutes, twice a day usually.  It has brought out some interesting  behaviors...chewing on his shirts for one.  Now he is sporting a piece of "chewelry"on his shirts all day to stop him from chewing his fingers and clothes and biting.  The chewelry is really helping him when he needs the deep pressure...I think the music therapy is helping with his attention span...his ability to stick to talk a tad longer than before.  This music is supposed help organize his circuitry, help put things in his brain in the right boxes...I am trying because its free and he likes the music. 

I was wondering if anyone can throw some thoughts my way about Michael, my autistic 2 and a half year old and his boundaries.  He has an area around wherever he is that he does not want his twin sister or baby brother to get into.  If they crowd him he pushes them or goes to bite them.  I usually can stop the bite before it happens, but I wonder if anyone has thoughts on how to get him to be wore tolerant of his boundary lines.  Does anyone else have an issue like this?  I would love to hear from you.  He allows mom and dad and his older teen age siblings into his aream but not the little siblings...interesting.

Let's remember this day April 23, 2009. I had to have an emergency meeting with Akyli's school YALE in Cherry Hill, New Jersey because I had some concerns about his education. Well, as I suspected I had reason to be concerned. Come to find out, even though he is bringing A's home he is not properly being taught. Let me explain, in 2005 when I first started the preperations for him to attend a special needs school he was preforming at a 6 grade level. Can anyone explain to me how he is still performaning at a 6 grade level? Me and his case manager have just come to understand that in all these years they have not moved him at all. In fact it's gotten so bad that his grades are starting to regress. I'm so mad. At this emergency meeting only his biology teacher and social skills teacher showed up. To me this is unacceptable. Where are the rest of his teachers and where was the school principal? Turns out that socially he is doing great and in biology he is doing good, but the classes I wished to discuss which were Math and English no teacher was in sight. I guess I'm going to have to file a complaint against the school. I'm adivising anyone who is considering sending their child there not to because in the end you will not be satisfied with the results. I also found out that many other parents have been complaing about the schools educational performance as well. 

I just started therapy with a new client and would love for you to follow a long with our journey.  :)

 day 1

Today being the first day, we met with the family, 2 other ABA therapists (besides myself) case worker, and my supervisor. He handled the noise and attention very well, he tends to be very affectionate and loving at this point. We started therapy and never really having structure before handled this fairly well. A bit of a tantrum here and there we use extintion so he wasn't sure how to handle not receiving the attention. We started 3 programs today and he was able to complete 1 of the 3. I feel that tomorrow will be more productive due to therapist being with him for 1:1. I could tell at times mom seemed saddened to have to sit back and watch while her son was having a tantrum and we extincted the behavior. As mothers we always want to try and make it better. For the most part the day was fun interacting and lots of tickels and giggles! I am exhausted!

Well I completed my first meeting for autism awareness, i was scared and shaking so hard it was difficult to read anything i had.  Two parents showed up, a concerned friend, and about nine teachers.  It was a success and naughty me i was late.  The meeting was suppossed to go for an hour and a half, but it turned out to go for three hours.  I was surprised and pleased at the same time.  Since i have been contacted by parents that couldn't attend and would like to in the future.  Teachers have expressed their excitement that finaly something is being done.  Weird parents and teachers agree for sure on that one subject, "Please do something, anything"!  We all have concerns and frusterations.  Please feel free to share some of yours so that as i do more meetings the frusterations, joys, and concerns can all be addressed.  Sometimes we don't know how to express our feelings and to have some one else give it a voice helps.

This is my experience.  Kaylee was baby A and has delays that qualify her for our special school district 3 year old program this fall.  Michael is autism spectrum.  I would like to hear from anyone with a similiar issue or just get in touch with anyone who has twins, delays or not.  Twins are so much more common now, but certainly not what I expected my doctor to tell me I was having, what a surprise!

I would like to thank everyone who is commenting and writing to me.  I really am appreciative of what this site is all about, and I am feeling my own wheels turning with new ideas and approaches thanks to the inspiration and thoughtful support from you all.  I have been pretty down lately, and today I just have a better feeling, so really, thanks for talking and sharing.  I know we are all busy people and the fact that we stop to help each other when we can is really a wonderful gift we give of ourselves.

I need help.  Michael is so erratic with is sleep ever since we took the milk away from him.  He took no nap yesterday, for example after waking up at 6am.   Then he crashed in his swing at 8 pm.  He woke at 9pm screaming like he was in pain...he pushed his dad and me away, not wanting to be touched and threw himself around all over the floor...Then Dad took him outside and he calmed down.  He passed gas, so his stomach was the culprit.  That was my fault as I am wimpy sometimes about the gluten free issue...he needed to eat something besides popsicles and potato chips so I let him have yogos and cheezits yesterday...I know I got my son high on dairy and gluten.  Forgiving myself  for that and moving on with strict diet rules..at any rate...Michael did not go back to sleep until 4:45 am.  And he has not gone to bed before 2 am for a week now.  We missed speech therapy today because he is sleeping like a child that rarely sleeps now...he is in a deep sleep.  So, we have a routine with him to go to sleep...and he doesn't like it varied....but I have to do something....anyone, please send me your ideas.  What about serenite jr?

Twice now, teachers and ABA supervisors have asked to be able to speak with our son's psychiatrist.  I don't know what these people think they are going to glean from these conversations.  When we see the psychiatrist, she always asks US questions about my son's behavior and she always recommends the same two medications.  She has prescribed a whole host of different meds for other children with autism, but always recommends the same two for my son.

The psychiatrist really wouldn't have anything additional to say to these other professionals, plus she would not be getting paid for this communication.  Maybe these teachers and supervisors think my son goes to the shrink three times a week for hours on end.  It is really more like 15 to 30 minutes every few weeks, if that often.  I feel really uncomfortable signing any waivers for these people to speak directly with the psychiatrist.  Sometimes I tell the psychiatrist personal information that I do not want to share with anyone else.  So I have NEVER given permission for anyone to speak with the family psychiatrist and I probably never will.

I am checking in and out of here several times a day, and I am a little discouraged that I may be too hopeful that joining this site is going to help me.  I am hopeful that more discussions will take place and that I will find some new and interesting people to talk to.  Hopeful.

Call me a fool if you want, but I have been emailing Oprah a couple of times a week now with a show idea...I am just going to keep on emailing her till they block me for sending too many, if they do that.  I want her to do a show on everyday folks like us with autistic kids.  I want her to let us talk about our days, our lives with this disease that has robbed our kids of a normal life.  I told her about my grant idea for low income families in hopes she will be inspired to do something with it.  I don't know, folks, but I have to do something.  I know there is a higher purpose for why this disease came knocking on our  doors.  I know I am supposed to be doing something, making a difference somehow in others' lives.  I have sat around for too long being selfish and not trying to help others.  I have to give good to receive good.  Does this make sense to anyone?  I am going to bug Oprah till she listens....join me if you like.  I could use the company and maybe the more emails she gets about this topic the more motivated she will be to help.  Personal feelings about Oprah aside, for anyone who isn't a fan, she does have a voice that people listen to, lots of them, so I think it is worth a good, hard try.

I completed the online application forms today for Michael to get the help from the good people at Thoughtful House in Texas.  I pray it is a green light go.  It takes about a week for them to get back to you, so like it always is with doctors and centers....wait  wait  wait.  I can wait.  Has anyone used these people at Thoughtful House in their experience that could give me a story?  It was reccommended to me by the Director of DAN who I count on for really solid help and advice and support.  She is so smart!  Anyway...if you are out there and you know about Thoughtful House and its works...fill me in.  I welcome the communications.

Thankfully, organizations such as Autism Votes have made it easier than ever to advocate for legislation and policies helpful to families affected by autism.  If you think advocacy is time-consuming or scary,  check out what a mere 30 minutes can accomplish. It didn’t  take a long time for me to make a difference. You can do it, too!  Read more at http://www.autismisnottheboss.com/2009/04/autism-advocacy-what-can-you-do-in-30-minutes/

So I am done obsessing over Michael's lack of milk-calcium etc...I am giving him a liquid vitamin supplement and letting the kid have his rootbeer.  We choose our battles, don't we with these kids?  I am looking into trying to get Michael to see a D.A.N. doctor...calls to make to see the costs...if they take our insurance etc...I also am contacting a nutrition expert that the director of D.A.N., Jane Johnson told me to call...they have a fund for helping those that can't afford her services...so maybe we will get her help with his diet needs....looking forward to the weekend already, myself because it means my wonderful teens don't have school and we can all play outside!

Okay Im new to this site but I am sure glad I found it. Im about to go crazy. My son 8 yrs old is very self abusive alway's has been but this year has been pretty tough.  lately he's been very agressive and is now bitting me and others.  He slaps his face and legs about 50 or more times a day! I was referred by his behaviorist about arm restraints or padded helmets. Does anyone know where I can buy them? Also he's been on Abilify, Respidal and not really working with him. What other meds would be good for him? The psyciatrist he currently sees is not much help Im currently looking for a new one possibly a nueropsyciatrist. Anyone know of a good one in Los Angeles, CA.

I have not been blogging very much as of late. Not for my own personal blogs, my Autism Blogs, or here. I think I just lost a bit of a drive to communicate. Usually I write the most when I am really passionate about something, usually a feeling. Things have been fairly calm for me and Michael the last two months.

Dating back, my tests came back clean, no cancer, tumors, or anything really. The medication I am on helps somewhat, but I am horrible at taking it every day. It is really gritty. I need to try to take it every day so I can honestly say if it is helping when I go back in. I also have some liver tests go a little shady. So I have been avoiding the drink. ok I rarely drink anyways.

Michael and I had a home visit with his teacher yesterday. He is doing really well in group work. He loves projects and crafts. Apparently him and a little boy even played a board game all on their own together taking turns. He is dependent on his teachers, very attatched. But he has another year of preschool with him. That will mean he got 2 1/2 year rather than just one.  And most likely he will continue on in Special Education in Kindergarten. I think I am ok with that too.

I really wanted to try going back to school this fall. I have been waiting for an update from the Student Loans so I could get the dollar amount for my defferrment papers. Well the reason I was never getting the papers was because they sent me to collections. So now I have no idea what I can do. The amount on the loans is nearly my annual income.

I may be able to go back to work this fall too. If I can find a good daycare. Michael will go at least one day a week, and probably on early outs. It would be great if I could work at one of the schools so it is same days as Michael, no worries about Snow Days. But jobs here are becoming scarse. Unless I want to go back to Fast Food...  read more »

Hello everyone. I have been blogging here for a little while now and I'm wondering where is everyone? The reason I ask this is because alot of people write for many different reason. Some people might be for advice, some for comments, some for friendship. What have I learned? Well, I learned that most people get a good amount of views but not many comments. I think all people should be nice and comment on other peoples blogs. We need to show one another that we are all there for eachother and you can't show that if you don't comment on people's blogs. I just want to hear from people and I want to understand why you comment or not.

Thank You

I am working on a place of my own to connect and learn with others.  My brother told me about blogspot so that's where I am for now.

http://michaelsjourneywithautism.blogspot.com/

I am just going to put this out there.  We are a low income family around here.  I am waiting to hear if Michael will get SSI/Disability.  My dream is to make him a class room in our basement with stations, all designed for his learning needs.  His sister, Kaylee, his twin is behind a bit, a little delayed and she too will benefit from this kind of setting.  I am searching all over the place for help in getting a grant of some type.  I am sure I am not the only mom with financial needs, but I have no family to help, and I have horrible credit so getting a loan is out of the question.   I am wishing there was a fund somewhere, a foundation that gave grants to low income families to construct settings for their special kids....anyone know of anything like this anywhere?  I have searched the internet extensively....zip!  I am disabled myself, a shutin because of panic attacks and post traumatic stress....so I am not out in the community, out anywhere but the doctors for my kids or me...Does anyone know of foundations that help low income families with autistic kids?

Now that we have taken away his milk....Michael refuses the soy milk.  We have tried chocolate and very vanilla and plain and added strayberry syrup even to the plain and he throws the cup to the ground in utter disgust.  He won't drink orange juice.  He wants rootbeer all the time.  He may drink sprite and apple juice mixed from time to time.  But where am I going to get this kid his calcium intake?  Anyone have thoughts or suggestions of what to do for the calcium or what kind of drink I can try to replace his cows milk?HELP PLEASE!!!  Thanks

Hello All:

 Kind of new to the site. I love it. I was wondering what you all thought of social groups/play groups.

Thanks in advance! :)

Michael loves his books.  He is now pointing himself and not making me do it all the time.  He is actually pointing at the pictures in books and getting really excited about what he is looking at.

I just wonder how many folks know about this powerful action you can take.  We just took Michael off of cows milk since that is the only dairy he eats.  We are already noticing huge results.  We just began presenting him with gluten free foods as well, though he is not much of an eater.  He has not run around on his toes in three days now.  He is focusing better on tasks.  He actually played with blocks for the first time since he was 18 months old.  He is yanking on the vacuum corn and saying "Pull" as he does it.  And his eye contact is improving dramatically. 

Today will be Izzy's last day with his home speech therapist. I wonder how it is gonna go. He's starting to speak now little words but it feels great. I'm so happy. Were going through the transition phase of school placement and it's going well. So far he likes the people at school, so I hope it goes well. The school took my advice and were doing the transition to school as i wrote about on one of my previous blogs. I think he's as excited as me, with going to school. Any advice on him starting school? Any things that i should remember?

I have always wanted to write a book about autism from the day my son was diagnosed, December 28, 1995.  I won't ever forget that day, it has forever changed my life, myself and everything that I do.  I'm scared to write a book.  Why?  I have started reading books on this very subject for the past 12 years.  To this day, I cannot go into a bookstore and not visit the "special education section" or "psychology section".  I must see all the new books out in print 'just in case' I am missing something.  I read about how individuals, mostly children, are cured.   read more »

You can read my personal blog at http://c-writing.blogspot.com - it's not just about autism.  It's about me, my life, education and being a single mom.  If you don't want to hear about it ... don't read it.

Hi, I'm new to this group, came via twitter feed from @autismnow.

We have a 12 year old son with Aspergers, a 10 year old that has just gone through the ADOS process, we're still waiting for the results on that.  Also, 18 months ago we adopted our (then 6 and 5)  niece and nephew. Social  services with their usual incompetence neglected to notice that our niece was visually impaired with horizontal nystagmys, and our nephew showed classic signs of autism (even though the foster carers he was with for a year  had concerns re:autism but were not allowed to get a diagnosis for him) so we had to go through the whole process of diagnosis and assessment ourselves. He was also confirmed Aspergrers a couple of months ago, however DLA now claim autism doesn't mean that they need any additonal care to a child of the same age without autism. Obviously they've never had any experience of living with autism, shame we can't get these idiots to live with our children for a week, they wouldn't last a day. 

What concerns me the most is the hasslewe've had regarding schools, as some of the old style teachers just assume the autistic child is a naughty child and should be treated as such. This infuriates me, just because the child does not look disabled they assume their behaviour is down to bad parenting. These people are supposed to be professionals yet they seem to not understand autism at all, like most of the general public they've seen Rain Man and think that's what autism is about. 

   read more »

So I have been trying to get my childs doctor to understand that my child is just not acting normally. He is showing several of the signs of autism...and if it isn't that he is definately showing signs of something else that is not normal for a child his age to be having unless there is something WRONG. My sons doctor keeps insisting that my son is just being bad and I finally got up the nerve today to switch docs. It is so frustrating to see my child go through the things that he is going through and his pediatrician isn't even bothering to dig deeper into the situation. There is just something not right about him. My son is suffering. I see it in him everyday when he wakes up until the time he goes to bed.

 How can I ease his pain and discomfort, confusion, and stress? He has been self harming and it continues to get worse everyday. I still have not heard back from Rileys Childrens Hospital and I have nowhere else to turn. A question to all the parents who read this...How do you help make your childs day more livable and comfortable for them? What are some good techniques that you would recommend to lessen the stess my son has and the self injurous behaviors he has been displaying? Any input is welcome!

Greetings - I'm new to the AB site and fairly new to the words "autism spectrum disorder."  My five year old son, Ben, was dx last month with HFA.  It's been quite a month, let me tell you.  And here we are:  Autism Awareness month.  I'm the sole paid employee with ReEnchant Planet Earth (www.reenchantplanetearth.com).   For those of you who are interested in learning more, read on.  ReEnchant is a movement founded on the idea that the time has come to shift the way we are living our lives.  At ReEnchant we feel that it is time to co-create, re-birth, re-focus, and rebuild our planet with an emphasis on the beauty and magic that is already in every day life.  We believe that by creating connections, we can make a difference in our communities and in the world.  read more »

The evidence is mounting that Hyperbaric Oxygen helps symptoms of Autism! A recently completed clinical trial showed significant improvement in most of the children. Here's a recent article about the study:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/143740.php

 For those of you living in San Francisco or the bay area,  there is a new facility is treating Autism with Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. 

 http://sfhbo.com/autism.html

 Also a list of facilities around the country can be found at the MUMS website. It is a wealth of information and full of inspirational stories :)

 http://www.netnet.net/mums/index.htm

I have been researching all the various biomedical treatment for years, for my 5 year old son. The one that sounded most promising was the methyl-B12 injections. It had a 98 percent sucess rate! So I tried it for a year and nada. However at first the teachers and I did see an increase of social skills, but it just evened out later on. Since he has been off of it, I havent really seen any decline. I spent 800 plus on this treatment. Does anyone out there noticed any other treatments that worked for their child? Also my son has an abnormal chromosome, it is the 16th chromosome, and there is an extra one on it. its called the 16p13.11. Has anyone herd of this abnormality? Thanks

 Jamie

This is my son Vincent when he was just 12 months old.

 I took my son, Vincent to the park today and was in absolute shock as to how he behaved. There were several other children there and I took him by the play equiptment and all he did was watch the other children play and pick up the mulch surrounding the play sets and throw it. He made no attempt to make contact with the other children which was very surprising. Vincent is usually outgoing and lately he has become quite introverted. Typically, Vincent is very outgoing but lately he has been withdrawing himself.

 As I was leaving the park with him he began in one of his tantrums. He threw himself down on the ground and began to scream and kick and hit. He bit himself extremely hard and even now 2 hours later he has teeth marks still imprinted in the skin on his arm.

    Emotionally, menatlly, and Physically I am worn out. I can't lift him when he starts these tantrums because he is dead weight while throwing them, not to mention the fact that he also weighs 35 pounds. I don't know how to deal with these behaviors. I don't want to spank him because I know that IF he is autistic he can't really control himself when it comes to these outburts. I feel like he is trying to call out to me or to reach me in some way and I feel like I am failing him because I don't understand what is going through his mind. He can't tell me whay he is upset and throwing these tantrums and he can't tell me when and if he is  sad or mad, or scared. I am at a complete loss as to what I need to do to get things back into control somewhat.

 I am to the point where all I can do is cry. I hate to see my baby boy going through these things and I am scared for him. If anyone could offer some advice as to how to get a grip of myself emtionally it would be very helpful. I know some of you if not all of you have had to deal with some of these emotions so some comforting advice is very welcome!

Social cues can be confusing or even scary for an autistic child. But robots, videos and more are getting in the act, and for some it's working.

For people with autism, facial expressions can be mysterious, even frightening. New tools are emerging to help them learn to decipher faces and thus better handle the social interactions they find difficult.

Nigel the bus loves to travel fast. When traffic slows him down, he gets angry -- and shows it.

Jennie the helpful tram normally wears a sunny smile, but her lip curls in disgust when she has to transport a load of smelly fish to the market.

Click on the newslink to read the entire article.

The founder and director of the West Burlington Autism Project discovered, however, students were not getting one-on-one treatment and were not being taught to intermingle with other children.

"We're unique in the whole United States, as far as we know," Johnson said. "We see day and night in kids in one year. Hardly anyone would believe it unless they see it."

To show U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-2nd District, that the pilot program is working -- and worthy of funding -- Johnson and West Burlington Elementary Principal Dee Crozier offered proof in a pair of students. Loebsack visited the school Tuesday.

Click on the newslink to read the entire article.

I'm still in the mourning process, my son is 5. I know he will never recover. His autism is severe. His stims and behaviors are  constant and I find the situation extremely depressing. I have tried everything and have been crushed by the false hope. I'm not sure if my marriage can handle this, I'm not the happy lighthearted person he married. There is so much pain and struggle everyday. We do have good support and somedays I can laugh at it. It seems that the pain is intense regardless. I feel like a weak failure for being so sad from the situation. I'm a religious person and I know g-d wanted this for a reason. I fear this challenge may be just to painful for me.

Hello autism community!  My name is Chelsea Combs, I am making a documentary about autism with a film student Addison Coston.  We live in the greater Los Angeles area and are looking for all members of the autism community to voice their experiences with autism.  If you are a person with autism, have had any experiences with autism, have a family member or friend with autism, are a professional, or just have advice for us I encourage you to contact me if you are interested in participating in our documentary.  

 Our goal is simply to educate, the more outlets there are for the public to be informed the better.  We both feel that this is a very important part of many lives, we would like to learn more through making this and we would like you to be able to share your experiences.  

 Addison is a student of Columbia College of Hollywood, this is  what he has chosen for his senior project.  He has worked in classrooms with students with autism and is very passionate about informing the masses about your experiences as well as facts about autism.  He decided to do his senior project about this not only to educate and inform others but to educate himself as well and give you a much needed voice.  

 We will be filming now through mid-June.  If you are available and willing to lend your voice, support, or advice we would greatly appreciate that.  If you are interested please contact me by messaging me on here, or emailing me at

chlscombs@yahoo.com

 My Best,

Chelsea Combs 

I hope everybody had a good Easter.As some of y'all already know (my facebook buddies) my son had another seizure. This time it was just a pedi~mal. I've decided seizures are like earthquakes. You never know when they'll hit, how big they'll be and they make you anxious waiting for another one to show up. It "hit" Sunday morning at about 2:30. I had my cry this morning, Im okay now. We watch Marcel like a hawk. BTW to make things worse the power went off almost immediately after the seizure ugh. It was raining which was nice, we need the rain really bad in San Antonio, we're in a droubt. The lights were off for hours, until about ten this morning. Oh & daddy has been on call (most everybody knows he's a Culligan man) and the after hours phone has been ringing off the hook all this week. Long story short it wasnt such a good Easter but the important thing is our boy is okay =)

Thank You everyone! You have all been very helpful with the advice you all have given me. It is nice to know that there are parents out there that are willing to share their personal experiences in order to help other families find some of the answers that they are in need of.

    I was able to get a First Steps provider to give my son a refferal to Riley Childrens Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana. The clinic is called  Christian Sarkine Autism Treatment Center. 

Hello Everyone! My name is Mariah and I am a mother of two boys. My oldest sons name is Vincent and My youngest sons name is Nicholas. Vincent is 2 years old and Nicholas is almost 1 year old.

 Lately it has come to my attention that my 2 year old has been having some very worrisome behaviors. Behaviors that are terrifying to my husband and I. My son Vincent was diagnosed as having speech delays ( In the social and communication areas.) That itself was obvious. H  doesnt have near as many words in his vocabulary as what the typical child his age should/would have.

    I had never really worried about his behavoirs in the past because I assumed that the things he was doing was fairly normal for his age ( temper tantrums) As time has gone by the tantrums have progressed into a nightmare for my husband and I. It is even worse for my son. I think a red flag went up when he started forcing himself to vomit. He then began to bite himself, to the point where he bruises or even bleeds. He will also bang his head on floors an walls harder than I would think was bearable for him.

      He has become abusive to me and my husband. It may sound silly being as he is only 2 years old...but what can you do if your child slaps you across the face and kicks you repeatedly. He will cratch us and bite us and all I seem to be able to do is cry. There are times when he doesnt appear to know who he is or where he is...or for that matter even know who me and his dad are.

  At this point he hasn't been diagnosed with Austism... But he is showing signs. His doctor will NOT give him a referal to a specialist and claims that he is doing these hings just for attention or simply to be bad. I on the other hand don't agree. I was surfing the web and I found this site and came here in hopes that someone could help me find some answers and help me figure out what steps I should be taking. Any advice would be greatly appriciated.

We're thinking about doing something untraditional with our house.  We have a two-bedroom home with an open dining/living room.  Our master bedroom is big with vaulted ceilings and a sliding glass door that leads onto our balcony.  The balcony is the only "lawn" or outdoor space we have since ours is a townhouse.  Our second bedroom is much smaller with low ceiling and one medium size window in the corner of the room.  It's a dark cave of a room with no overhead light fixtures.

My husband and son and I all sleep in the master bedroom.  Our son has his own bed and we have ours.  The problem is that Wyatt keeps pulling the blinds down one by one.  That means that I have a feeling of less privacy from the neighbors and also that the sun wakes us up at the crack of dawn.  Of course, I could try to change my window coverings.  However, I was thinking, what if I make the cave-like second bedroom our "sleep room"?  Right now we use it as a therapy room and guest bedroom for when my mom visits.  

That would leave our bedroom free to be a home-office/gym/therapy room.  I've ordered a trampoline for Wyatt.  I looked on Amazon and they had medium-sized ones for indoor use that got good reviews from parents of [large] children with autism.  Hooray!  It would be nice to get some other exercise stuff, too.  Cindy suggested Craigslist and there is also FreeCycle.  read more »

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Thanks for your interest in TheAUTSPOT.com!

TheAUTSPOT.com was created by Dele Popoola and Greg Koltsov, graduates of the University of California Santa Barbara. Dele’s 18-year old cousin, Matthew, who was diagnosed with autism at an early age, inspired the two young men to create the online community following their graduation from college in 2007.

   read more »

To whom it may concern:

We are social work graduate students at Loyola University of Chicago
interested in studying the early signs of autism from the parents'
perspective.  We are currently conducting a short and quick online
survey for our research methods course. The survey will take
approximately 5-10 minutes and would appreciate feedback responses as
soon as possible.

We would appreciate any help in contacting parents who have children
diagnosed on the autism spectrum disorder.

We have attached the following link below to our survey, easily
accessed online via surveymonkey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=1xs44f9qZjydrQiaVZHOsQ_3d_3d

Your participation is greatly appreciated and we thank you in advance
for forwarding on this survey.

Sincerely,

Allison, Andra, Anne, Christina, and Katie

I have 2 mo old son who through gentic testing was found to be in a high risk category for developing type I diabetes.  I have read several articles which link the increasing rates of autoimmune diseases, such as DM I, and vaccines.  He has not had any vaccines so far, and I am not sure how to proceed.  I want to take it slow with safe and separated out vaccines.  My current practice only offers CDC guideline vaccines and will not order anything else.  Does anyone know of a practice in the Atlanta area that offers alternative vaccines?

Thanks,

Shellyb

 When my son was in preschool (autism class) The first thing the teacher did was make a pot of coffee. For morning snack the kids would have a small coffee and crackers and she said that it did help the kids stay focused for about 30 minutes. Tea and cola did not seem to make a difference but she did see a difference with the coffee.

This is for a research paper on Autism Spectrum Disorders. How was your child/sibling/loved one diagnosed? How did you feel then? Now? What is a typical day with your Autistic loved one? If possible, you can either reply here or preferably email me at Desiree.Delattre@gmail.com

Thank you so much! This will be a big help! 

Hi, I'm new to AB, and I joined because I need a way to express my feelings about the infighting of the autism community.  It should not be about "cure" vs. "acceptance."  It should be about how do we care for our autistic loved ones, how do we communicate with them, and vise versa.  I will be saying more about this in the days to come, but right now, this is what is bothering me, and I want to begin to get the word out that I believe in Care, not Causes, or Cures.

I have a little nephew who is the sweetest thing. He is not speaking at 21 months, and he is also not swallowing. I have suspected from a pretty early age partially because of eye contact that he might have autism, my children were born prematurely and I spent alot of hours in children's hospitals and interacted with children that were diagnosed.

They suspect that there is something wrong, and they have an appointment with a specialist scheduled for August. They don't really know what it is though. I am afraid that I will offend them if I suggest that they look at autism as being a possibility. Can someone comment on how you might have felt....or how I should help them?

Thank-you.

The jumping tree-lover is my 5 year old grandson.  He is on the autism spectrum.  He has phenomenal balance skills and is in gymastics.  He LOVES heights and jumping from high places.  He stands on top of Daddy's head with perfect balance.  That is the Jumping part....and ther are many funny and scary stories associated with that. My intrigue today is with his obsessive love of trees.  His autism struck at about 1and a half years old.  His first word was tree.  After that a few more words..........then nothing.  He loves to touch and hold or hug trees.  The following is typical for him: While at Busch Gardens yesterday, amidst all the sights and sounds, he chooses to step over the lanscape curbing to visit and caress his friend Tree.  He can clearly say the word "tree" now and will always gravitate towards a tree.

I tried to search the internet for any information on associations between trees and autism.  Perhaps I am not an astute researcher, but I am very curious to know if anyone else in the Autism COmmunity has some light to shed on the topic.

Tree-lover's grandma.

Let me know what you all think!

Hi Everyone-

My name is Desiree DeLattre and I am a student at Chico State University.  I am currently working on a research paper about Autism Spectrum Disorder and I would LOVE to include a few personal stories from all of you. I would like to get a brief (1-2 paragraph at the most) summary of your experience with ASD and vaccines. Do you think Thimerosal is to blame for your loved ones disorder? Why or why not? Your opinion is greatly appreciated. If you care, let your voice be heard; not just to Autism blogs, but get it out there! It starts with the schools, what our future generation is taught, just one of you can influence society and save a child's life. 

email me at: desiree.delattre@gmail.com

Thank you! 

I am making this blog for an english class. However, this is something i have wanted to do for a long time. I am originally from Wisconsin and moved to Logan,Utah to go to Utah State University to persue a bachlors degree in chemistry. I have an autistic brother named Kyle. He got moved to live with my dad in madison, by the court, after he had lived with my mom for many many years(my parents are deivorced by the way). So when i moved to utah i got to talk to my brother over webcam when he was with my mom, me and my dad weren't on good terms. My brother was my life, i took care of him practically his whole life, and he was my world. It was almost christmas break, less then a month, and i couldn't wait to see him again. One day while i was in my first class of the day i got 2 calls from my family, and that wasn't normal. So i called my mom, and all she told me was to stay where i was and that someone was coming to get me. That is all she said for what seemed like forever. When she knew that someone was getting closer she started to tell me the story. My dad had parked his jeep in a park and called 911. He then shot my brother and then shot himself. My brother pretty much died instantly, but my dad got put on life support for a little while. Someone from the school came and got me, and as she lead me inside she told me that my brother didn't make it. My world came crashing down, my brother was my life and the reason i choose to do what i want to do. He totally changed me for the better and completly changed my world the day he was born. I was crying so hard i couldn't breath, it was like i wasn't even crying, it was horrible. I have never cried so much in my entire life before. The school was really nice and found me a flight out and took me there too. When i got in wisconsin there were so many people there waiting for me, it was very comforting, i hugged my mom for what seemed like forever.  read more »

My son is 9 yrs old and attending regular school taking specials.  He's very verbal and is definitely learning but his behavior seems to get in way.  he does a lot of flicking and sometimes stemming. He sometimes gets obsessed with certain interest. Looking for advise or similar behaviors.

On Tuesday April 2, 2009 I took Izzy to his neurological evaluation. Dr. Minarcik was great. I really liked him. After hearing my last name he told me that he evaluated my older son when my older son Akyli was 3.  I thought that I remembered him. I always knew his name but couldn't remember why. Funny how small the world is. So that made it alot easier on me. I felt good to go with a doctor who evaluated one of my children and diagnosed him properly. He was very gentle and kind with Izzy. It took a little while but he figured out how to get Izzy to warm up to him and everything went ok. After his exam was over he told me that Izzy is on the autism spectrum. Izzy is Autistic. At first, I was upset. My husband helped me with my anger and helped me put things in perspective. I'd really liked to thank him for that. Sometimes I don't know what I would do without him. So now it's official, Izzy is autistic and so here we go again. the good thing about this time is that I've already been through this once so as far as schooling will go I think things will be good for him.

My son, LJ, is 3 and a half years old.  He has SPD/SID, but also has signs of Aspergers or PDD.  He is highly communicative and big groups in small spaces are a huge trigger for him, so we are trying to figure out where & how to get him evaluated for AS right now.  He probably only talks because I made him acknowledge what I was saying at a very early age, and talk to me about what he needed/what was wrong out of sheer necessity.  He was very withdrawn early on and would spend hours in his room after situations that caused him huge anxiety (new people, new changes, transitions, etc).  I have another blog, but I'm sure people get tired of hearing about him, so this may be a good place for me to vent (or encourage) as the days progress.  I am a huge believer of early intervention.  I am also a Christian, so anyone who has advice from that perspective, esp on boundaries & behavior modification, please let me know!  :)

We are keeping a chick for a few days until I can find a new home for him. Michael loves him. And Birdie loves Michael. What is amazing is Michael was the best with the chicks than any of the children. He is gentle and caring, and definately very mothering to the bird. Birdie likes to climb over Michael's lap and then falling asleep. And now Michael is in bed and the dang bird will not stop crying if I put it down. So I am sitting here with a chicken on my lap and surfing the net. Feels a little weird.