CelticWomanForum.com

Today is World Autism Awareness Day.
CNN will be having a dayong focus on Autism with stories on different people with autism, as well as the the various treatments currently in use. I hope you all get a chance to check it out.

Bob   

Does it have any footages?

Kim,
I only got to see a little of it this morning and just turned back on now. They seem to be running several news items throughout the day. So there is video, on various different people, families, and doctors. So far it has been very interesting.   

I have a nephew that has Autism. (God Bless him) There is some talk that some foods that you eat can make it worse. Like wheat. There is just to many cases of Autism. I wish they can figure it out.

My brother has two sons with it. The younger one "Patrick" is on a very strict diet and it seems to be helping. I am very heartened to see that this terrible disease is finally getting the attention it deserves. I recently watched a special on HBO called "Autism, the Musical" where a group of children with autism, wrote and put on a play. One of the best things they showed was that people with autism are no different than the rest of us they just have a harder time communicating. It just takes some time for us to appreciate, and understand all that they are trying to share with us.     

I'm glad there is more focus on Autism now, and it seems more research is being done.
As with most diseases, it's usually when it occurs in your family that you are motivated to learn about it.
 
For information on Autism:
http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer

(http://www.autism-society.org/images/ASA_2008_Conference.gif)

Thank you Maggie. Here is a personal favorite that does great work
http://www.autismspeaks.org/

Wow! Those links are very good. I'll prove that I do have Autism. :)

Thank you for this post. My older brother has Asperger's Syndrome,which is an autism spectrum disorder. And you're right,Chochobar,that they are just like us.

It's NOT a disease. I have autism (Asperger's Syndrome, though it's barely noticeable). Autism is actually a type of disorder that affects the brain so that it process information differently, either quickly, slowly, thinking outside of the box etc. Autism can be hereditary or can be linked with environmental factors, like when a pregnant woman consumes either food or takes medicine. The most common theory of how children develop autism is when their mother is pregnant and consumes foods with traces of mercury or other hazardous elements.

I have Asperger's Syndrome, but it's a really slight affliction I have. I mean, I've been around kids who have it much worse than me, and I absolutely cannot stand being near them (they either creep me out or annoy me). The only noticeable things for me having autism (Asperger's Syndrome) is just communication and emotional problems. Like, I process information differently, express my emotions differently and have a hard time understand others' emotions or comprehend information.

EDIT: rewording a sentence; left out 2 words.

I must admit that I'm a bit skeptical about the techniques used to diagnose autism and related disorders.  I myself was diagnosed with autism at an early age by two school psychologists, but my parents believed otherwise.  After a lengthy debate, it was decided that I would be evaluated by a professional psychologist in a large city near my hometown.  He ultimately decided that I did not have autism.  More than fifteen years later, everyone agreed that the third psychologist made the correct decision.  Granted, I did show many symptoms related to autism at the time of diagnosis, but my parents knew me well enough to believe otherwise.

When diagnosing autism (or any disorder of a similar nature), I believe it is up to the parents to take all information — even advice from a licensed professional — with a grain of salt.  In most cases, it is the parents who see their children most often.  Parents are the most familiar with the daily routines of their children, and should understand them better than other members of the public.  When it is time to seek outside help, though, a second (or third) opinion never hurts. ;)

Sean

Naraku, you are right and I apologize for using the word disease.
As far as I can tell from my reading and experience it's just that people with Autism process information differently. I have heard many theories about the causes for it. Everything from diet, or vaccines, to chemical content in food. I think other than research the main thing that needs to be focused on is why doesn't insurance cover treatment for this? I live in a state (Minnesota) where alcoholism is considered a disease and you can get disability benefits for it?!! Really?! Yet my brother has to pay $500 a month just for speech therapy! autism treatment is considered education, and thus not covered. I put in a previous post that back during the polio epidemic  1 in every 5000 americans had polio, and it was considered a national epidemic that needed immediate attention. Right now 1 in every 150 people in ths country have autism, 1 in every 85 boys. Yet nothing is being done.
Sorry to get up on the soapbox, but this is a topic that is dear to me.

Bob       

Ah, it's okay. People should know that autism is not really a disease to begin with, but a type of 'mental disorder' (there's no disorder in it to be precise; it can actually be a good thing at times) for just processing information differently and learning.

I believe there IS a federal law about it, though. I know there's a federal law that if anyone were to harass someone with a documented disability (autism falls right into that category; I'll explain), they would break it and face judicial punishment. I had counselors when I was at college who told me that. The thing was, I was in a 'skirmish' with a group of girls back at college and they took advantage of me. They did A LOT of harassment towards me and I fell into a trap they made, which got me into trouble with campus police, only that they were found guilty of harassing me and I was the victim later on. And after that was finished, they still harassed me by telephone and instant messaging (I do not know HOW they got my phone numbers; I had them blocked on instant messaging the night of the skirmish, but they found my other account and sent hate messages).

Thing is, we can still sue those girls for what they did to me due to me being autistic (having the label of a documented disability!). The thing is, back when I was at college, a lot of teachers knew I was a good student. People just labeled me as a 'stalker' (mainly girls) for no apparent reason, mainly because I was autistic. Did they even KNOW the definition of a stalker? It's someone who tracks other people by following them everywhere. Mind you, I was TOTALLY busy with school work, drawing, hanging out with friends and playing video games, so how could I be a 'stalker' in their eyes if I were busy doing my own things? You know?

It's just that people would label someone who is different (like having autism) for being weird (like how people viewed me). I live a normal life like everyone else, despite my differences. My mind functions differently, and yet I'm normal.

Today is World Autism Awareness Day for 2009.

Conchobar said/ There is just to many cases of Autism. I wish they can figure it out.
They never can figure it out completly. I can't figure it out for myself yet because i have a light form of autism said the dockters.
Here is a little story abouth myself .
Somewhere in 2008 i was diagnosed a very light form of authisme.
It was not easy at school and and it's not easy when i was working
I did a part normal school than i did a school for kids with learning difficulty's
There is a problem with tempo when i was at school and when i was working plus being shy is int making easy'r
Talking abouth myself,how i feel ,...... is very difficult for me
I have weaving a safty place and sometimes i put new things to it . CW belongs to that safty spot also the cwforum and meav'sforum. I need these things
New situations and changes scares me most of the time that i'm crawling back in my safty zone
I was upset and very i don't know how to say this word something like "unstable nervouse upset unconsetrate" when lisa's and orla's forum was shut down.
Those feelings brought a holes in a safty zone and it's not easy to close that hole's. ( coco nows what i mean )
I'm in therapy for the moment to now where i'm standing in that autisme line
Talking abouth this is for me a monster step , gonna stop now before i'm getting myself down again

That was very brave of you to tell us that, Kat. I'm sure we're all glad we're part of your safety place. This forum is a safety place for many people, even those without autism. But to think we can help people who have that added challenge is a wonderful thing. Thank you for sharing with us.

Chris

Its still not easy

Very well said, Chris.  Thank you, Kat.  We have other forum members with autism and I'm glad we can all have a place like this to share our love for Celtic Woman and help you and others feel that this is a safety place.

April is National Autism Month and tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day for 2011.

Another year past, and tomorrow is World Autism Awareness Day again.

That's an interesting idea. Wheat is one of the foods our species has only taken to eating in evolutionarily recent time, which is why allergies to it and other grains is a problem. It also stands to reason that it could then cause other problems, though I'd like to know what facts support this specific claim.

April is Autism Awareness Month and tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day 2013.

www.autismspeaks.org

Great to hear! :)
I know we as a community have at least 3 with a form of Autism around these days, myself included. :-[
Normal people need to be aware of people like us. Some people are low functioning, and some people like me are high functioning, at a genius level in some things and not in others.
We are people where you can't see the disability. With some people with disabilities, you can actually see it.
Normal people need to see the ability that we all can contain.
We just need to be given a chance.
That's all a lot of us ask...

Great post, Jerad. 
Thank you. :)

April is National Autism Awareness Month and tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day 2014.

That must be the next day where I can turn 22.

Today is the 8th annual World Autism Awareness Day.  https://www.autismspeaks.org

Jim that awesome if you don't know I have autism myself

Thank you. :)  There are several members of this forum who have autism.

like jerad,triffany

And me?

oh I didn't know sorry kimberly

Wow, I didn't realize this thread was still going! :) I will also add this. My ex-girlfriend whom I dated in the middle of last year has Asperger's Syndrome as well, and want to know what she did? She could obtain money from Social Security in the mail just because she was autistic. She told me that she made more money off SS than working at her job... But look at me, I'm still working and she isn't. So listen, if you have autism, don't use it as a crutch to get Social Security benefits. It's a bad way to abuse it. We are still functioning people and we all should have jobs. With me being autistic, it hasn't stopped me from having a career and education.

April is Autism Awareness Month and tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day 2016.
https://www.autismspeaks.org

April is here again -- World Autism Month -- and tomorrow is World Autism Awareness Day 2017.
www.autismspeaks.org

April is here again -- World Autism Month -- and tomorrow is World Autism Awareness Day 2018.
www.autismspeaks.org

April is Autism Month again and tomorrow is World Autism Awareness Day for 2019.
www.autismspeaks.org

An annual April reminder about autism:  www.autismspeaks.org
 :)