autism affects several families i know, including my own. two of my brother’s seven children have autism. my good friend debbieKnitter’s son, mason, who has appeared on this blog several times in a starring role, also has it (i’m not kidding—he goes around telling everyone he is a “star on the internet” becasue he was on my blog last year).
and it is entirely possible that a few people in my life went undiagnosed—here, i think about that kid in my class who just wouldn’t listen when we were changing activities, and that girl who played completely by herself every day on the playground for years. or the intelligent, serious co-worker who seems terribly dissociated and unable to express himself appropriately, to the point where he is stuck in the same, unrewarding job for years.
you might have heard about the “epidemic of autism” that is “striking our children”. the phrases might make you feel either confused because you don’t know what it really is, and/or relieved that it isn’t happening to you, and/or sorry that you cannot help. after all, there is not a lot any of us can do to stop autism in a person who already has it.
so what IS autism?
according to an article i found on Autism Speaks
Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that typically lasts throughout a person’s lifetime. It is part of a group of disorders known as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. It occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. Autism impairs a person’s ability to communicate and relate to others. It is also associated with rigid routines and repetitive behaviors, such as obsessively arranging objects or following very specific routines. Symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe.
and there are LOTS of little things you can do that would make a difference
(and really, they are only as time-consuming as you want to make them, i promise):
- first, you can find out more about autism and the different ways it manifests itself. becoming familiar with the information will give you plenty of tools to make choices such as who gets your vote each november, where you might give volunteer time, where you might target some of your charitable contributions, and where your human touch might be needed most.
- even if all you can do is NOT judge another’s initial behavior, and remember that they might be struggling, that is doing a lot. and reminding others of the same is a good next step . . .
- if you know someone who has a child with autism, send a card, or give a call once in a while to say hello and have an adult chat. give that person an opportunity to talk about anything they want. chances are, dealing with their child’s condition has eclipsed their own needs somwhat, and they could use a little “me-time”
- and while you are at it, ask if there is anything you can do—would inviting them to your knitting night be a good thing (they don’t have to knit), or a trip to the mall, just the two of you? how about dinner? it doesn’t have to be a lot, or all the time. just the touch of human kindness, even once, means a lot. you know what i mean . . .
- try reaching out to a person with autism in a way that you both seem comfortable with. email, cards, and phone calls can be good ways to begin a relationship. it might be slow, and unlike other relationships you have, but equally rewarding. it is easy to overlook the treasure of friendship in someone who is socially different, and possibly not seeking you out. but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t like to, or that you will be rejected if you try. (ok, you might have to try a couple of times, but go for it!)
- i’m sure you can think of a few more to add to the list—be creative—i know you are. whatever you do should suit your personality and lifestyle; something with which you feel comfortable.
- use your blog if you have one to pass this information along—the knitblogger community is strong, BIG, and responsive. if anyone can make awareness happen, it’s us. we’re the perfect vehicle for this message. and it takes so little to make it happen.
i put together a short list of links that will lead you to more information. please, please PLEASE! press one of them and read. that’s all i’m asking. (i mean hey—there’s even a movie listed here . . . and alan rickman is in it)
Autism Awareness Month, National Mental Health Information Center
Cure Autism Now
Autism Speaks
Autism Society of America
Autism Awareness Home Page
AutismLink
Snow Cake
there will most probably be a couple more posts this month about the topic of autism, and mason says he will make a return appearance to tell us his side of the story.
stay tuned.
22 thoughts on “april is autism awareness month”
Wow, thanks a lot for the information, Anne! I have just read your interview with Mason, and I’m looking forward to his return appearance: it will be very interesting to read the story from his point of view. I’ll keep in mind your suggestions of little things we can do; I guess a day will come when I’ll have the opportunity to make good use of it.
I look forward to what Mason has to say! There were several young men whose moms brought them to the library every week who eventually became comfortable with me and let me have small peeks into their worlds. The best book I ever read on this subject is “Thinking in Pictures” by Temple Grandin.
Such a great post- all this info in one place. I definitely learned some stuff here I didn’t know.
I have two friends with children with autism. Thanks for writing about this to readers who may not know much about it. There is a lot that can be done today for autistic kids as my friends’ children attest to, so it’s good for people to learn and have hope.
What a wonderful post. Thank you for bringing attention to autism like this 🙂
bravo! i have been blessed with 3adopted autistic brothers, all different levels of difficulty. from severe, nonverbal unable to care for himself up to a 17 yr old high school student.
this is a wonderful piece. and while those diagnosed with it may not relate well..it takes the right type of person to get them to relate. after reading the march 6 post of your on mason..you have the special touch. reading mason’s words made me smile. he reminds me of the youngest of the 3 brothers. i loved reading both this new post and the older one.
Bless you for your attention to the world of autism. I’ve been reading your blog for awhile and was thinking about it earlier tonight – it’s one of my favorites. I like the way you express yourself.
I’ve been a member of the knitting world for only about 2.5 years and a member of the autism world for 13.5 years. We have a beautiful 13 yr old son who was diagnosed with autism at 3 years old. He’s fairly high-functioning and an absolute joy. Life is different for us, but he has blessed us and brought us a totally different perspective on the world.
I would encourage your readers to remember that people with autism are the same as us, they just process differently and their sensory systems don’t function the same. The grocery store might be a normal place for us to be; but to a person with autism it can be overwhelming with all the sounds (even the fluorescent lights humming) and the colors, lights and confusion coming at them at the same level. Keep this in mind when you see them retreat into their coping behaviors.
I took my son with me to our LYS when I was working one Saturday morning fully expecting him to sit in the back room with his video game, but he decided he was comfortable and helped move skeins of yarn from one wall to another and became the official host of the store that morning. Even greeted customers at the door, welcoming them and asking if he could help them. Of course, we had to jump in and rescue him when they began telling him what they needed, but he had a great time introducing me as his assistant and showing them where the ‘knitting sticks” were. Great kid!
Thanks again for helping with Autism Awareness. It’s appreciated greatly! Keep up the great blogging.
Dearest Anne, thanks for the subject of your blog today. That figure is even higher in NJ – 1 in 95 children. Truly alarming, yes?
Thank you for bringing this important topic up! Autism affects so many families, so many children, that it is something that we all really need to be aware of.
Recently we thought that my young nephew might be autistic because his emotional development was different than with other children (we had him checked out, and he is not autistic). But since then I have felt the need to learn more about autism, what it is and what, neurologically, causes it. Thank you for spreading the word and encouraging others to get involved.
What a wonderful post, thankyou so much. My son is autistic and used to feel so alone in the world. It’s thanks to people like you that he no longer does, he feels that he is more able to be proud of the person he is. The more people talk about autism and are comfortable with it, the more people like my son feel safer to join the outside world. Thank you.
hi anne – thank you so much for posting about this! i’m on the autistic spectrum myself (asperger’s syndrome) & it’s great that people like you are encouraging folk to be more understanding. a little awareness goes a long way to helping people on the autistic spectrum! xo
Thank you so much for bringing more awareness to autism. For a while they thought my son had a form of high functioning autism. It turns out he had developmental delays and some severe behavior issues. My husbands 2 nephews have autism and its very hard on their family. More people need to be made aware of how autism affects the entire family and your wonderful post does it well. God Bless.
Great post. I work for a company that provides services to children under age 5 who are diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum. The numbers of children being diagnosed on the spectrum is staggering. There are some great fundraising events through NAAR, such as Walk Far for NAAR that are very family oriented. I encourage everyone to learn more about this important topic.
This was really great — and for me, the road to learning about autism has been the road to learning about my own son. He is not in a strict sense, autistic, and yet many of the insights about and techniques to help autistic people really really help me deal with him well. I’ve also concluded that autism is a spectrum we are ALL on (left brain, right brain, medulla thingy connecting them functioning) and that too helps me think about myself, my son and those around us.
It’s startling how often autism is diagnosed nowadays. Thanks for shedding light on it.
Anne, if there where just more caring and understanding and nonjudgemental individuals like you in this world who want to help those individuals out there who happen to fall outside the spectrum of what we consider normal, the world would be a better place to live in. I’m sure of it! My brother is not autistic, but he does suffer from severe neurological disorders. One of them being tourettes syndrom, which is very difficult to live with. And he has severe obessive compulsive disorder, which is what plagues him the worst in his adult life. I’m extremely close to him (he is two years younger than me). People have a very hard time understanding and coping with people who are different than they are. We need compassion, and information. Thank you for trying to inform others about important issues like autism.
I’m a chronic lurker, but I have to THANK YOU for this post. My four year-old son was diagnosed with Progressive Developmental Disorder shortly before his third birthday. (PDD is on the mild end of the spectrum — it basically means that he has autistic tendencies, but not in great enough number or frequency to be full blown autism.) With early intervention, he’s progressed amazingly far, but he still requires a very different set of parenting techniques than his “neurotypical” older sister. He loves yarn, though, and will sit on my nap for long stretches of time browsing colors. In fact, one of his “breakthrough” moments came last Christmas, when he told me he wanted to give his teacher a purple scarf. For a little guy who used to spend a frightening amount of time staring off into his own world, or flicking light switches repetitively, this was a fabulous request. And of course, I complied!
Your list of suggested “little things” is great. When you’ve got a child who takes extra energy and patience, a comment like, “You’re doing well with him,” or “He’s got a sweet smile” buoy you up like you can’t imagine. 🙂
This reminded me of a little boy I met at our local Fair last year. I was demonstrating spinning at one of the exhibit booths, when this boy stopped to watch what I was doing. He looked so intently at the wheel turning and the fiber, and it seemed that he saw very little of me. When I slowed the wheel so the he could touch the flyer, drive wheel and fiber, his father quietly indicated that his son is autistic (he just barely whispered it so as not to distract his son from what was apparently this “very interesting spinning thing”). I simply nodded and continued to show the boy a little of how the wheel works and what it does. I hope he’ll stop by the booth again this summer.
I am looking forward to what Mason has to say!
Thanks so much, Annne, for bringing attention to autism…
Thank you for discussing this! My 22 year old son is autistic. His take on the world is rather refreshing at times. He really stumped me one day when he asked, “Mom, why do I have pockets in my pajamas?”
I used to receive a special mother’s day card from a dear old man who did this as a gesture of support. It always buoyed me up. That sweet old man has since passed away. While my son’s needs (and also mine) are not as intense as they once were, I still appreciate the thoughtfulness of friends.
My heart went out to a mom I saw in an amusement park with her son last summer. She was washing his hands in a restroom and he clearly was non verbal. He was wearing a screen printed tee shirt that said both “peanut allergy” and “autistic.” I suspect that he had a wardrobe of those tees.
thank you for writing with such kindness and compassion about autism. i was diagnosed with asperger’s syndrome (a high functioning form of austism) as an adult several years ago. suddenly all my difficulties and frustrations with social interactions made sense. if i didnt knit i don;t know what i’d do. the repetitive motion is calms like little else. now that i’ve found people who are as passionate about knitting as i am, a whole new world has opened up for me. knitters in general are so kind and welcoming. sometimes when i go to my knitting groups i dont say much, i just sit and knit and nobody thinks much of it.
Two more autism links to recommend. GRASP is an autism advocacy group run by people on the autistic spectrum. there is a lot of good info about aspergers/autism. another is the movie “mozart and the whale” based on a true story about a budding romance between 2 people with autism. its a very sweet and funny.
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