The literal world of autism -

[Bravo]

I know this story is meaningless to most of you but I found it kind of interesting.

My 10 yo daughter has severe autism. On the positive side, she is social, affectionate and can read, write and talk fairly well.

On the negative side, she had virtually no logical (mathematical) or abstract thinking ability. She sees everything literally and cannot do the simplest math.

What do I mean by abstract? Well she can easily identify men from women because they look differently. But if I tried to explain that our whole family are 'Americans' she would not be able to understand that abstract thought because she cannot see 'American' with her eyes.

We've never taught Laura about race. My parents never taught it to me either. Let each person learn as they go through life.

Laura calls black people - 'brown people' because literally they have brown skin - not black.

So one day as she was talking about 'brown people' I asked her what color she was.

She looked down at her arm and said,

"Peach"...

I got a chuckle out of that one...

[DaveE]

Nice story. I got a little chuckle out of it too.

[spankdoggie]

I don't think people know just how difficult dealing with autistic children is...

I read that parents of an autistic child came home with them crapping on the floor, and then smearing their excrement on the walls, and worse stuff than that... Autism is more difficult than retarded, in my opinion...

Bravo, it must be so difficult with an autistic child. Glad you see the joy...

[JEFF4i]

Good story Bravo.

My mom has been a special education teacher for quite some time now, and some of those kids are the sweetest and nicest kids I've ever seen. I really enjoy going to her class (usually).

[goatster]

that was a cool story Bravo.i thought her answer was cool.i luaghed when i read it.

[Bravo]

Having a child like this is like having schizophrenia....or bi-polar.

You have the highest highs and the lowest lows.

I have a strong belief in God but am not terribly religious. One of my friends from college, when learning about Laura said..."She is without sin".

I didn't take much stock in that when I heard it but over the years, it has rung true repeatedly.

Her brain is not developed enough to understand evil, prejudice etc.

I have two reactions to this (the schizo). How wonderful it is to have someone who does not understant racism etc. On the other hand, I worry a lot about her being victimized...especially after I am gone and cannot protect her.

You guys are the best who respond to these posts.


thanks

b

[BStone]

My mother has taught kindergarten for 40 years and dealt with children with autism. She had some issues this year with her principal and has planned to retire. Had it not been for one autistic child she had in her class, she would have left at the Christmas break. The progress that this child made in the first half of the year is what kept her coming back this year. Obviously teaching that grade for that long she loves children, but it seems that she takes even more to those special children who make you realize how much we can complicate things in the real world. Best of luck to you and your family and may you have many more highs than lows.

[BigJim13]

Having a child like this is like having schizophrenia....or bi-polar.

You have the highest highs and the lowest lows.

I have a strong belief in God but am not terribly religious. One of my friends from college, when learning about Laura said..."She is without sin".

I didn't take much stock in that when I heard it but over the years, it has rung true repeatedly.

Her brain is not developed enough to understand evil, prejudice etc.

I have two reactions to this (the schizo). How wonderful it is to have someone who does not understant racism etc. On the other hand, I worry a lot about her being victimized...especially after I am gone and cannot protect her.

You guys are the best who respond to these posts.


thanks

b

I never really had given autism a second thought until I started listening to Imus. Say what you will about his "other antics" the man has done alot to bring awareness to people like me, someone who never would have paid any attention ( as much as it pains me to say that ). When we found out my wife was pregnant I hoped and prayed for a healthy baby and thankfully we have a healthy beautiful little girl. I never imagined my life could be so drastically changed and my priorities shifted.

Your story was a good one, and touched me in a way that a 13 months ago (b4 we knew she was pregnant) I didnt think possible. I dont want to get to mushy and will leave it at GREAT STORY!!!

[Rockford35]

B,

Sometimes the innocence of a child is a trait that I wish many, many people had. I think alot of the problems of the world could be settled if they were thought of in a more simple manner.

When I was in elementary school, we had a wing that housed austistic kids and kids with other mental disabilities. When I was in about grade 5, we (the students) thought it would be a good idea to bring the kids from the wing out to play with us for recess instead of segregating them. Those kids had a ball playing football, soccer and everything under the sun. You could see all of them just beam when it was time for recess.

Funny how it took a group of 12 year olds to figure out the obvious...

R35

[VtDivot]

That's a great story B.

You are living one of the worst fears of any parent, and from what I can tell, are managing quite well. I realize that there are millions of things going on in your household that I could never dream of, or that media couldn't begin to explain. My hat goes off to you.

Please keep me up to speed on her progress.

Thanks,
C.

[JEFF4i]

Having a child like this is like having schizophrenia....or bi-polar.

You have the highest highs and the lowest lows.

I have a strong belief in God but am not terribly religious. One of my friends from college, when learning about Laura said..."She is without sin".

I didn't take much stock in that when I heard it but over the years, it has rung true repeatedly.

Her brain is not developed enough to understand evil, prejudice etc.

I have two reactions to this (the schizo). How wonderful it is to have someone who does not understant racism etc. On the other hand, I worry a lot about her being victimized...especially after I am gone and cannot protect her.

You guys are the best who respond to these posts.


thanks

b

Autism is fascinating. I've known and "befriended" many children with it.

On your point though, let me tell you this much, and I am completely sincere when I say it...

There are people out there who really care about others, regardless of who they are, and sometimes even if they barely know them. This leads me to believe that while some might try to victimize, hold faith that there are others who would try and help her along, including your family, friends, and sometimes complete strangers.

[JEFF4i]

That's a great story B.

You are living one of the worst fears of any parent, and from what I can tell, are managing quite well. I realize that there are millions of things going on in your household that I could never dream of, or that media couldn't begin to explain. My hat goes off to you.

Please keep me up to speed on her progress.

Thanks,
C.

I've actually thought about this extensively, given that I want a large family and this are the things I think about. (Ugh, that sounds aweful)

Anyway, it is a fear for all parents, I'm sure, but it is truly incredible to see some parents treating this as a blessing.

Bravo, based off of his posts, seems to be doing great regardless. (Though my opinion is of little weight)

[zaphod]

My daughter is entering graduate school this fall at Univ-Wisconsin Madison for a communicative disorders career. I believe autism will be her focus both at the clinical and research level. She became interested when as undergrad she would babysit two mildly autistic children. The past summers she has taken on much more challenging cases. Listening to her stories and care plans tells of patience, joy in victories and the emotional stresses.Also she tells of the many different philosophies and treatment plans now being presented .As a parent is must be hard to choose. Wisconsin is now introducing legislation requiring medical insurances to cover treatments. I hope this happens.

The stress of lasting care for your daughter must be tough. I hope you have support in family and friends. I can imagine golf at times is a sanctuary.

[Pa Jayhawk]

Great Story Bravo. One more example of how much you can learn through someone of such innocence. While in college during the summer I worked in the MR field, and studied Psychology for a good part of the time in college. Teaches you alot about patience and understanding. It is stories like these that make it all worth while. During those 3 years, mainly during the summers, I learned far more from the people I worked with then they likely could learn from me.

Cheers.

[Eracer]

B,

Sometimes the innocence of a child is a trait that I wish many, many people had. I think alot of the problems of the world could be settled if they were thought of in a more simple manner.

When I was in elementary school, we had a wing that housed austistic kids and kids with other mental disabilities. When I was in about grade 5, we (the students) thought it would be a good idea to bring the kids from the wing out to play with us for recess instead of segregating them. Those kids had a ball playing football, soccer and everything under the sun. You could see all of them just beam when it was time for recess.

Funny how it took a group of 12 year olds to figure out the obvious...

R35

Well said. We complicate our lives in a feeble attempt to impose our will upon the world around us. Whether we engage in goal-directed behavior that takes advantage of others, political correctness that belittles another, racism that demeans another - it all diminishes us. The ability to just live, and to see things as they are, is a precious rarity.

I'm not saying that an autistic child, or those like Bravo who love them, are lucky to be in that condition - far from it. But we can learn from even the meekest among us, if we choose to.

Bravo, you love your child, and appreciate the good in her. That is all that matters.