autisable's Autisable

To Medicate, or Not to Medicate

Wed, 23 May 2012 20:00:00 GMT

This is the question I have been struggling with for the better part of two years.

When Bianca was diagnosed she was given a primary diagnosis of classic ASD and a secondary diagnosis of ADHD. We knew she was autistic long before her diagnosis and already had her in therapies, the ADHD I never really thought about, but it was not much of a surprise. Bianca was constantly moving. From the time she woke up, until the time she passed out she was on the move. She ran from point A to point B almost all day and she grabbed everything in her reach. Bianca also had a low attention span and wouldn’t sit still at a table when you were trying to teach her something.

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Releasing the Grip

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:00:00 GMT

I am a problem solver. Most people who know me well can attest to this. I see a problem and I become obsessed with finding a solution. It is one of my greatest qualities because it has allowed me to tackle things a lot of people wouldn't be able to face. I work tirelessly, until I find an answer that can bring me peace of mind. I chip away at each possibility: researching, feeling, thinking, asking. Always asking. I intuitively know how to look at something from all angels and the best part is- I can actually put myself in the situation and examine how each solution would make me feel. Only I don't merely imagine how it would make me feel, I take myself there. I actually become completely enveloped in it, as if that path has happened. A lot of people have similar qualities about them, but many who know me would agree that I have a certain intensity and tenacity about my approach that is fairly uncommon. More Here...

Does Floortime Therapy Work? We're still waiting for the evidence.

Wed, 23 May 2012 16:00:00 GMT

I’ve been reading about Floortime/DIR Autism Therapy for the last twenty years and have also written about this topic at length before. The theory behind this form of “play” therapy always sounded compelling because it appears to mesh well with a very nurturant style of child-rearing. Unfortunately, during the last two decades, there has been very little in the way of scientific testing to support the purported efficacy of this method. Although there have been many dozens of uncontrolled studies, Floortime Therapy has never been subjected to the rigor of science, much to the frustration of adherents to the scientific method. More Here...

Video: Ethan Plays 'Piano Man'

Wed, 23 May 2012 14:00:00 GMT

A video of Ethan, a six-year-old boy with autism, playing Billy Joel's "Piano Man" has become an internet sensation. Now Billy Joel himself has praised Ethan's performance, saying, "I think I like his intro to "Piano Man" better than mine." Watch Ethan play the song below! More Here...

Book Review: The Optimistic Child

Tue, 22 May 2012 20:00:00 GMT

The Optimistic Child: A proven program to safeguard children against depression and build lifelong resilience by Martin E.P. Siligman, Ph.D.,

I’m not here to argue with the premise of this book as that kind of review is available elsewhere. Instead, I’m going to attempt to see whether the strategies contained within this book might be applicable to children such as ours. More Here...

Autism Light: Kathy Medina

Tue, 22 May 2012 18:00:00 GMT

Kathy Medina is from Clovis, California. She and her husband Glenn have three children, including a son with autism named Zack. Kathy was a Life Insurance Agent for 15 years with American United Life, and left that position in order to be able to home school her son Zack. She is the author of the book Finding God in Autism and has developed a fantastic website that compliments the book and offers around the clock spiritual encouragement to families living with autism. Kathy Medina is an Autism Light because of the lives that she has touched with spiritual encouragement in the face of autism through her writing and website.

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Court Declares a Vaccine Caused Autism in 1 Case

Tue, 22 May 2012 16:00:00 GMT

An Italian judge has sided with the parents in a case where the MMR vaccine stood trial for causing autism and 100 percent disability in a child. Apparently the child became sick the same day as taking the vaccine and never recovered.

The U.S. news media has failed to pick up on this news, while the Italian newspaper scolded the judge for encouraging measles epidemics. More Here...

Poetic Musings from the Aspie Mind

Tue, 22 May 2012 14:00:00 GMT

: autism my musings, a poem

Autism What’s it all about:

For sure will there ever be a cure?

Maybe not now, maybe soon,

Today, today it is really hard to say. More Here...

Jenny McCarthy Announces That She Will Pose Nude “For Autism”

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:15:00 GMT

First of all, I thought I’d put “for autism” in quotes in the title for one simple reason… she’s not doing it for autism.

You can read the news stories here

Jenny McCarthy is head of Generation Rescue, a charity that claims to fight on behalf of children, specifically children with autism and even more specifically than that, according to them, children that have been harmed by vaccines.

That’s all well and good, I can argue those points another time.

The fact is though, by focusing a cause on children, and then making efforts to raise awareness of those children… fighting for those children… she might as well have said that she’s posing nude for children. More Here...

Autism and Sexuality - IMFAR 2012 Conference

Mon, 21 May 2012 18:15:00 GMT

Now that IMFAR has wound down and I have a moment to gather my thoughts I’d like to describe a few of the less-noticed findings from this year’s conference.

One concerned autism and sexuality. I found that quite interesting because it’s a topic I had not seen at IMFAR before, and it raised interesting and probably controversial new questions. The key finding: Several studies reported a marked increase in the rate of LGBT identity as compared to the NT population.

More Here...