World Autism Day….2nd April, 2011

World Autism Day – that’s tomorrow, 2nd April.  All over the world, people and organizations will be turning “Blue” to show their support for those with Autistic Spectrum Disorder or ASD.  The Sydney Opera House in Australia is getting into the swing of things by turning on blue lights tonight so that should be pretty awesome to see!

This subject is close to my heart.

My son has ASD. Asperger’s Syndrome actually.  It’s commonly referred to as a “Social” disorder (or anti-social, really) because sufferer’s have loads of trouble communicating effectively with others, looking at the world from other’s points of view and their reactions to situations are often considered abnormal or extreme.  They thrive on routine – they need to do the same things in the same way at the same time, every day!  They intensely dislike change of any sort (to just about anything, really) and don’t cope very well when you DO change something, most likely won’t look you in the eye when talking to you, are very uncomfortable in social settings and are so very often the subjects of constant bullying and harassment by their peers – particularly at school. Many a time I have wanted to break the kneecaps of an unrelenting bully when he has been upsetting my son to the point of him refusing to go to school or walk outside our house.  (Note to bullies:- always remember that there’s a Mumma bear behind every cub you harass…..ok? And one day you might cut across her path…… lol)

In Australia, the government has really put some weight (and money) behind Early Intervention programs – aimed at the littlies – toddlers to primary school kids.  This is really wonderful and I applaud all these efforts  to help these kids and their parents from such a young age.  I wish I had these programs when my son was that age.  However, we did have the most wonderful Occupational Therapist in the whole world!  She was our life-saving angel and through her strategies we taught our son to clean his teeth (I know – it sounds SO simple…..), to dress, to get to school on time (mostly…), to be a good shopping buddy, let others take turns etc etc, to be less obsessive over his “pet” loves, to be less aggressive when he didn’t get his own way.  But maybe most importantly (aside from helping us cope with 20 tantrums every day!) was that she helped us realise that it wasn’t our “fault” Jake has autism and that we were actually wonderful parents!!  She helped us put down the foundations for helping our son put the building blocks of his life in the right places.

My wish now is that the government would offer support to the older ASD people.  Like the kids who fell through the cracks and weren’t diagnosed until high school.  Like the adults who have only recently been diagnosed because nobody really understood why they were so “different”.  They were “odd” and things had to be done a certain way – no room for compromise.  Maybe they could never really hold down a steady job for too long – even though they tried really hard.  Maybe they found it hard to make friends, or were just “weird” in the eyes of their bosses and colleagues.  There’s so much for them to learn about how this world and the people in it “work”.  It can be very isolating and lonely because many, many  people just do not understand this disorder.  Education is the key.  Not only to educate the  “Aspie” to help connect those “wires”,  but also to educate the “non-Aspie” on how best to help.   The ASD sufferer’s world is Static – they don’t want it to change.  They like everything to stay the same. Forever. No changes.  But it doesn’t work that way.  The world is Dynamic, ever changing – it won’t wait for people to catch up.  Educating our “Aspie” in the “ways of the world” has taken years, so far – still a very long way to go – and he will never stop learning and growing.  But it can be done.  And it benefits everyone – the sufferer, parents, siblings, husbands & wives, friends, school teachers, employers, law enforcement agencies, …..everyone, the whole community.

Over the years we have seen Jake grow into a fine young man.  He is quite clever (still “big” on facts and figures and all sorts of useful – and other – general information) and devours books by the truckload.  He is very competent at carrying on conversations that involve the interests of whom he is conversing with – that’s a huge step forward!  He gives people an opportunity to share their opinions and thoughts with him and limits his own participation in the dialect to just three pieces of information at a time – so he doesn’t monopolize  the conversation or “bore” the other person.  I reckon a lot of “neuro typical” people could take a leaf out of his book!  He still loves his video games – now he just doesn’t talk about them for 5 hours at a time!

But that’s just one of the huge steps he’s made.  There are many more.  I could go on and on and on….and on – but then I might sound like I have Asperger’s Syndrome!  lol  So I’ll leave it there……for another day.

For those who aren’t familiar with ASD – please consider taking a little time to understand this complex disorder and the effects on those who have it – and their families.

Take courage all you who have these special, marvellous people enriching your lives.  The work is hard – the rewards are huge.

I consider myself a very, very blessed Mum!

Advertisement