Following is a Guest Blog by Shelly Lewis, President of Jackson Autism Support Network.
This is the first in a series of blogs by Shelly, detailing both her personal experiences dealing with autism and as President of Jackson Autism Support Network
Living in the Wonderful World of Autism
WOW 17 years! That seems like a long time. The thing is, that is the only world I know. My name is Shelly Lewis and I have 2 boys that are living with autism, Brad, who is 21 and Garrett, who is 10. My boys are on the opposite ends of the spectrum. Brad is very high functioning and Garrett has many challenges and is non-verbal.
Both boys were officially diagnosed at 4 ½. Brad was diagnosed in California, where we were living at the time and Garrett was diagnosed at the University of Michigan. It is mind blowing that the rate of autism has increased so dramatically over the years. When Brad was diagnosed, it was 1 in every 2000 and now it is 1 in every 100. When Brad was diagnosed, we were not only given a diagnoses for our son that I had never heard of, but they also said that he would never be able to do what his peers were doing. He would never go to college, he would never live on his own, he would never get married or have kids and that we should set up a trust fund for him. He would need 24 hour care the rest of his life. I often would say that the aliens come down and took my little boy.
The doctors painted a very bleak future for my son. However if there is one thing I have learned living in this world of autism, is that never under estimate the human body and mind. If our bodies are given the right stuff, they can do some really great things. Brad reminds me of that every day. He is going to college - studying theater, he has a learner’s permit and will soon take his road test, he works part time at the accounting office with me, volunteers at the Michigan Theater and does a lot around the house to help me out – dishes, cleans bathrooms, garbage, vacuuming, mows the lawn, and shovels snow.
Copyright 2011 Shelly Lewis |
leif.borreson@gmail.com
http://www.therapyjackson.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Comprehensive-Speech-and-Therapy-Center/269988219679426 https://twitter.com/#!/CSTCJacksonMI
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