My son was recently diagnosed with Autism

i dont have any relatives that have autism but what is running to our genes are cerebreal palsy... i have maybe 3 realtives who have this. but i have encountered so many children with autism cause i used to to an intern in a special education school. and to tell you honest yes they can be really hard to handle but most of the time they are really adorable and really fond of to be wiht, they seems so jolly and mirthful. actually i like hanging around with them. and i know all children with autism have some special abitlities. like this one boy in that school, he knows all the capital city as well as the look of its flag of all the country in the world and the other one he knows alot about president like in the usa... maybe your child also have some kind of ability that you may discover sometime.. and for me if you are given a child with that kind of condition, i consider you a lucky parents..cause god choosen you to have this kind of responsibility that he thinks not everybody can handle.

Hello, I have a son who 2 years old we are going for his evaluation wednesday to see what exactly might be wrong. He is already scheduled to get speech therapy and play therapy. But I want you to know about 4 weeks ago we found a website that suggested some children can't breakdown the protien in milk called Casein. It goes through thier digestive system where what ever is left would normaly turn into peptides and be released in the urine,Some children can't do this and it enters thier blood stream where it acts as an opiate and then affects brain development. They say that there may be a direct corelation with this and the autism spectrum. They also suggest trying a gluten free diet we haven't tried that part yet but we immediately took him off dairy products. I mean it was worth a shot right. Let me first tell you about my son before the diet change. He wouldn't make eye contact or even ackowledge if he hard what you were saying. He might have said 5 words sporadically and never clearly, He never waved bye bye or joined in play time with his sister. He would be very obsesive over certain objects holding them all day even bathing and eventually falling to sleep with them. These are just a few of the things he did but I really want to tell you about his results since his diet change. He is a completely different child. The first day after taking him off dairy products he turned to me when I called his name and actually came to me. Over these past few weeks he has made incredible strides. The next morning when my husband left for work my husband stood at the door and waved as usual and My son actually went over to him and gave him a kiss and a hug. He has picked up probably 15-20 words. He is immitating us and singing and counting. His sister has a carebear exersize movie he has never participated in this with us rathe r he stands off to the side, but just yesterday, he was clapping and kicking his feet and dancing. I was just blown away. I am sorry I don't know how to add a link but I'm sure you can easily lookit up online. There are some researchers that say it isn't proven to be helpful but I am a firm believer and I say a diet change is the least invasive thing we can try so why not. I hope you all the best with your son and I'd love to know if you decide to try this and what your results are.

our neighbors had twin boys both autistic. They are about 28 years old now. they have it to the extreme. Their younger son and daughter are normal ( age 23 and 19) their sons still live with them and probably will until mom and dad can not care for them ( they are in their 50"s). they had therapy at their house 5 days a week for 2 hours a day. they always (well one of them) took a shower about 5 times everynight starting at 9pm, every night. one seemed a bit more wild than the other. they did not talk much at all, they are stronger than snot, and one would "escape" out their locked front screen and run in the street chasing down cars and screaming at them (the cars). maybe 2 times per month. again they were extreme autistic or maybe "classic case" go to your group!!! learn what you can it will be worth it

These are all such tremendous responses, I feel like I'm going to fall short here, but to me I would go to You Tube and watch the video of the boy who played basketball and made all those "3s" at the end of the game. I can watch that everyday and still cry. The fact is that there has been a lot of progress with the diagnosis of late and some become virtually fully functional. Let's just pray that God's plan will always work itself out for a reason.

My aunt (who has an 8 1/2 yr old with autism) recently told me she couldn't believe I was taking the news "so well" when I found out in September that my own son (who is 3) has Autism. It's not like I didn't know there was a problem of some kind. My son was fussy since he was little, I had often wondered about his hearing (and had it tested, but it was fine). His speech developed slower than his older sister's did.. even the pediatrician told me she had no reason to believe it was Autism. However, after about a year of therapy, he was diagnosed. He's been in special preschool since September, and his speech has improved tremendously (although he was out sick for a week, and my husband and I both noticed a regression). He has echolalia too, where he repeats a lot of what he hears. But I'm told that it fades as the speech improves. He does not have any extra therapy, but he does qualify for it. I can't really afford to pay for it right now, although my husband's insurance does cover a certain amount. My son isn't fully potty trained, either. I hope he is by the age of 4, but who knows. LOL He's extremely loving like you said your son is, but yeah.. behavior can also be a real pain in the you-know-what. I've had somebody from the behavioral support department come out just to talk with me about once a month, although his school has never officially referred her to me because of any problem in class. So that's good. My son has some medical tests that will be done in January to see if anything else is going on with him that might be causing any of his delays. Maybe once that happens, I too will be more motivated to get the extra therapy and all of that. I've been reading up on ABA therapy as well. The lady who does the behavioral support worked as an ABA therapist for a long time before this job. It's really not the end of the world. I can see you know that, but yeah. It's definitely overwhelming at times. For the most part, I don't think about it. He's just my kid and his development is a bit slower than his sister's. But now and then it creeps up on me. :)

I just posted a similar one a while ago but this is about our friend's daughter. She too is autistic. I can relate to what you are feeling right now since we see them almost everyday and they seem to be doing fine. And most of the time the little girl is in her best behavior. My advice : just keep loving him the best you can and when difficult times come, just remember his smile which, I know, is your treasure beyond compare!

i'm so sorry with ur situation,but dont give up.its true that autism is now common happens to kids, i have a friend that her niece got autism when she is already 3yrs old.actually autism can be heal by therapy also you can practice this therapy ur self.find a way to give him therapy on ur own by reads some books or find it in internet.try antyhing.hopefully your son will be better soon

We are still waiting on the official diagnosis of our daughter. Her school therapist says she has some qualities of autism but doesn't fit into the mold. She believes she has Autism Spectrum Disorder. She is 3 1/2 years old and can now climb up a three rung ladder and go down the slide by herself. Even go down a slide that makes me dizzy! She goes to a severe delay preschool and is making great progress. She follows a picture schedule very well and we are now trying to do that at home. She has learned a few new words along with their "signs". I think we don't usually hear about adults with autism because they have other symptoms that are more visible(?). In other words, they have OCD or whatever. Do you know what I mean?

I don't have or know of a child with autism, but many children with this diagnosis can grow up to function well. They need special attention to make up for the delays in their development. However, some adults that I have read about and seen on tv have gone on to college and made good careers for themselves. They may not be as social even into adulthood, but they have comfortable lives. You can find many books on the subject at Amazon.com and some talk about functioning adults with autism. I hope that one of them might ease you mind. You don't grow out of autism, but you can have a good life.

Autism is being my interest to discuss since I wanna get a baby shortly. It could frightened me up until to get a baby I always pray to God. There's good info that I take from site about autism. Autism is a physical condition linked to abnormal biology and chemistry in the brain. The exact causes of these abnormalities remain unknown, but this is a very active area of research. There are probably a combination of factors that lead to autism. Genetic factors seem to be important. For example, identical twins are much more likely than fraternal twins or siblings to both have autism. Similarly, language abnormalities are more common in relatives of autistic children. Chromosomal abnormalities and other neurological problems are also more common in families with autism. A number of other possible causes have been suspected, but not proven. They involve digestive tract changes, diet, mercury poisoning, vaccine sensitivity, and the body's inefficient use of vitamins and minerals. The exact number of children with Autism is not known, but estimates suggest that roughly 1 in 1,000 children are affected. Autism affects boys 3 to 4 times more often than girls. Family income, education, and lifestyle do not seem to affect the risk of autism. Some parents have heard that the MMR vaccine that children receive may cause autism. This theory was based, in part, on two facts. First, the incidence of autism has increased steadily since around the same time the MMR vaccine was introduced. Second, children with the regressive form of autism (a type of autism that develops after a period of normal development) tend to start to show symptoms around the time the MMR vaccine is given. This is likely a coincidence due to the age of children at the time they receive this vaccine. Several major studies have found NO connection between the vaccine and autism, however. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention report that there is no proven link between autism and the MMR vaccine. Some doctors attribute the increased incidence in autism to newer definitions of autism. The term "autism" now includes a wider spectrum of children. For example, a child who is diagnosed with high-functioning autism today may have been thought to simply be odd or strange 30 years ago.

I don't know too much about Autism, but I have found some intesting things about it. www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/autism.htm - 156k - Cached - Similar pages.

Maybe I can help. My brother has autism.. He is now 22 I believe.. I actually forget because I am not close to him anymore.. Growing up we were best friends but at a certain point he shut me out when I started getting more mature than him. I have barely talked to him in 5 years. When I visit he won't talk to me or look at me or my husband. He is in his last year of High School - autistic students get to stay an extra 3-4 years in the special ed classes. After that is over, I think my parents are going to have him stay at home with them. However, I know there are assisted living places where he could live and work. My brother is probably capable of this but I know that my parents prefer to keep him at home and pamper him and spoil him.. I know they can not imagine having an "empty nest" but I know if they wanted then my brother could have options. Just make sure he gets into good school programs especially when he gets to a working age find a school that includes working outside of the school. My brother has worked at Big Lots, Old Navy, Krogers, and other places.. He has learned the skills to do basic jobs like stocking or bagging if he really wanted to. A good school district is Cy Fair in Houston, Texas. Cheap housing too. I'm not sure where you live but if you can't find good programs at high school level maybe it can be an option some day. Feel free to email me privately my email address is bj_osterhout@yahoo.com

While my son doesn't have autism as a "diagnosis" I do believe he has some symptons of it. My son is doing things I never though possible, like speak for instance. He has verbal and oral apraxia - he is High on the sensory output. Whatever you do do not give up hope or faith that things will be ok. I know how much it is killing you inside- it is ok to go through all of that. You have to in order to HELP your child. Potty training will come, it takes FOREVER! Doesn't help that he is a boy either, because boys are naturally slower. Please continue to use us to vent.

Oh I can completely relate. My youngest son is autistic, diagnosed at 18 months old. He went from doing everything early, to not doing anything at all. All I can say is, this is not going to be easy. This is going to be a long road of therapy, and understanding, and cannot forget compassion. I have one of my friends who is an adult, and he is autistic. Sure he's had his ups and downs in life, but he's had a business (which was shut down..haha long story) he's doing well in school, and he's doing things in life that most people would not even dream of doing. So yeah having a normal or close to a normal life can happen. I am sorry this happened, but you must look to the positive of things. No matter what, he's still your baby. He will always be. If you get the right amount of help for him now, he can live next to a normal life.

Autistic children are the most gifted ones. They have special talents, I have lived that to say with a friend of mine. Of course, it's not the end of the world. And why should be "normal" like the rest? He is spoecial and thank God he is going to be with you.

I don't believe half these diagnoses, encourage him to be a normal little boy, give him lots of affection and encourage him to do what he is good at.

well atleast they didn't diagnose him with down syndrome and they could be wrong they might have just thought that he has autism because the way he was acting......

I'm so sorry to hear this. I really am but you are right, he isn't dying of an incurable disease. Besides, he is still young enough to be worked with so he can lead a normal life later on. Just have faith in him, and the care he is having and he will be fine. There is a wide range of types of autism. To be honest, I wonder if I am mildly autistic myself since I do have some of the traits and I even wonder if my 2 and a half year old son may be as well. He hasn't been diagnosed as both of my kids go to Montessori. He is very bright but is always in his own little world. I think time will tell too. As disappointing as this news is, just have faith, with the help he is getting now, he will be okay later on.

it depends on the severity of his autism. i personally know a grown adult male who is autistic. He can't really talk, but he's very friendly, and he understands what you say when you talk to him. He goes to a group home daily and then returns to work part time with his mother who is blind. He helps her around by holding doors and moving things out of her way that are foriegn to her territory. He can sort of mumble. But he'll nod yes or no if you ask him a yes or no question. and he has one of the most beautiful smiles i've ever seen. he's a good young man.

My oldest was diagnosed when he was three. Before that he was listed as non categorical early childhood. I know it is not a popular theory right now in the mainstream, but I know for a fact that my son's problems were caused by vaccines. He was a totally normal child at 18 months of age, and then he had his MMR and within a few days he was gone. We have done all of the normal mainstream treatments without any real success. He has been in speech therapy since he was 2, Occupational therapy, behavioral therapy, the works. We never got any real results. Recently we began seeing a DAN! DR. (look up defeat autism now and the autism research institute). The results have been dramatic. I can still tell that he isn't a normal child, but it is harder and harder for strangers to tell. Even his therapists keep remarking on how drastically he has been changing. We expect to see a full recovery within the year. Right now his only real remaining delays are in social aspects. He doesn't understand how to respond normally in a social setting. He is easily overstimulated and doesn't have a handle on how to respond yet. His social speech is still a bit delayed, but he went from being 3yrs behind 4 months ago to being about 6 months behind now. That is a huge improvement. He still isn't potty trained, and that is another social issue in his case. He just doesn't understand why he should want to be. He doesn't understand the social stigma of still wearing diapers. And it has become a habit for him now. We are about to start ABA therapy to take care of the behavioral issues that have now become habit. We have real hope that he will lead a normal life now, somethign we didn't have just 6 months ago.