Father’s Day in the autism community is becoming something amazing

By on June 18, 2012 in Autism

Since getting involved in the autism community, particularly with my blog, I’ve gained a little extra attention simply for the fact that I’m a father. I knew, going in, that fathers speaking out was a rarity but I really had no idea just how rare. And while I enjoyed being given a little extra oomph to my voice by people willing to help get fathers heard a little more, I also kind of felt that I shouldn’t be taking it because… well, it’s really not fair. My voice was new, not yet established and even I wasn’t sure if I should be reaching a wider audience yet.

Still, as the years passed, I did get to meet some other fathers and I did get some more extra attention by those who were eager to hear from a dad for a change and started to feel more comfortable in my role… the autism father.

I was getting emails from other dads telling me how nice it is to hear that they’re not alone. Some of them even started blogs of their own. I was getting comments from moms telling me that they passed on something I wrote to their husbands and that they really liked it.

But this year… this year really takes the cake.

And I’m going to write now, a lot about me, but it’s not to gloat. Honest. It’s just that mine is the only perspective I have and don’t follow all of the mentions/articles/features that other dads have. But I will still highlight a few that I did notice.

Anyway, skip passed this next section if you want to get straight to the point because I am trying to make a point here.

A Father’s Point of View

something special magazine

Click for full size

This year, months ahead of time, I was contacted by Something Special Magazine because they wanted to feature a few “Dynomite Dads” for their June issue. It’s a magazine that distributes in only a few states but it’s growing and doing well and to be honest, for a guy sitting at home in a 10×10 room with no windows while my kids are playing, being in a print magazine is pretty awesome.

You can read the whole issue here or click on the thumb to the right to read the page that was about me.

A little closer to Father’s Day, I was contacted by Your Beautiful Child to be the guest featured father for Father’s Day morning. What an honour! And it really was a great show too, I think. Although the hour went by far too fast.

You can listen to my interview here.

On Father’s Day itself, I got mentions from fellow bloggers such as from Lou at Lou’s Land and also from resource sites including:

I even had a blog post of my own that was shared about quite a bit and another blog post of mine featured over at http://SpecialHappens.com as well.

 The rise of the fathers

The point is, which I alluded to earlier, is that father’s are getting noticed and being heard. It’s not that no one would listen before but that we just never tried. Well, ok, some did but not enough. Not nearly enough. There’s still not enough but this proves that more and more dads are getting out there and speaking up.

This proves that more and more people like what we’re saying and want to hear more.

So yes, I shared mostly links to what I had going on but many of those links include more links to other fathers and to other resources with more fathers. Check them out!

Go find those dads… you might not agree with some, that’s to be expected. But some of them may have some very fresh perspectives which may really grab your attention.

And if you’re a dad and you see all these other dads out there, jump right in! Start your own blog, start commenting on other’s blogs, start up a Twitter account.. what ever.

Just, let us hear you. I’ve already proved that people want to.

If you’re still not convinced, check out this video from ABC where they talked to Lou from Lou’s Land… a father.

For more incentive, check out these other great dads:

Yeah, I’m pretty thrilled with the attention I got this Father’s Day. How can I not be? Still, the best part of the day wasn’t all the hoopla at all.

The day started with an email from a man in Florida who simply said that he read my story and now, no longer feels alone.

I can’t even begin to describe to you how great that feels. What a brilliant way to start the day!

Father’s Day is over now, but there’s a whole year to find more dads that are willing to speak up, to give more dads the attention they deserve and to make next Father’s Day even better.

It’s very exciting to me. I’ve seen so much change in so very little time.

Fathers, you rock!

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This one is for the dads

By on June 17, 2012 in Parenting

daddy saddleHere’s to the dads that don’t mind changing diapers, doing the feedings, getting up at night, running the errands, cleaning up the messes and all the other baby things.

Here’s to the dads that have no problem pitching in with dishes, laundry or other chores around the house.

Here’s to the dads that don’t make their wives attend all of their children’s appointments/meetings/events/etc on her own. No matter what their schedule, they make the time.

Here’s to the dads that get up early with their children, miss out on week-ends with friends, don’t get to travel like they used to and may not get out to the sporting events that they once did… and though they miss some of the freedoms of the past, they wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Here’s to the dads that see mostly moms doing the talking online and at conventions and decide to get involved too.

Here’s to the dads that are stay at home parents while their wives work. Despite what society may or may not think, they deserve every bit as much recognition as stay at home mother’s do.

Here’s to the dads that understand that having a special needs child may mean giving up on the dreams that they had for their child but that their child’s future is going to be wonderful and amazing anyhow and will encourage, nurture and support them every step of the way.

Here’s to the dads that are single parents, despite the fact that history and tradition have not prepared them at all and tells them that they can’t do it.

Here’s to the dads that will play with dolls, roll in the dirt, talk on toy phones and do anything else their child needs them to do… even in public.

Here’s to the dads that can work 3 jobs at a time when they have to, to provide for their family, and still manage to find time for family too.

Here’s to the dads who stuck around when all they could think about was leaving.

Becoming a father and being a dad are two different things.

Here’s to you… the friend, role model, strongest person in the world, the vanquisher of monsters, the guy who slips their kid a dollar or a treat even when mom says no… you’re the man of the house and with that you deserve more than just a day.

You’re a dad. It’s who you are.

Here’s to you. For being you.

Happy Father’s Day.

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Jackson’s Journey – Where no one should ever have to go

By on June 15, 2012 in Charity

Do you know what a Hemispherectomy is? Wikipedia describes it as “a very rare surgical procedure where one cerebral hemisphere (half of the brain) is removed or disabled.”

On Friday, June 29th, at 2pm, a sweet little boy named Jackson is going to be the next person to have a Hemispherectomy.

Taken from Moving Forward… to Neurosurgery:

“J has autism, cerebral palsy, sensory processing disorder and intractable (untreatable) epilepsy.  A form of epilepsy called LKS / ESES.  His brain is in a spike and wave pattern that, among other damages, does not allow REM sleep…the sleep needed to consolidate the days events…allowing learning to happen.  Spike and wave equivocates to his brain firing in attempts of physical manifestations of seizures…. the damage being done is pervasive.”

Jackson’s mom, Gina from http://specialhappens.com is very well known in the special needs blogging community, often giving of herself and providing far more information than most “professional” sites ever have.

And now it’s time to help her out and to help Jackson continue his journey through and beyond his surgery.

They will be hosting a FUNraiser in their town, which you are more than welcome to attend. Information is here: http://jacksonsjourney.specialhappens.com/jumpstarting-jacksons-journey-funraiser

Also, you can help out with a donation, if you can’t attend, by going here: https://rally.org/jacksonsjourney/donate

I know that, being online, especially in the special needs community, we get asked to donate a lot. And we’re forced to pick and choose because as we are in the special needs community ourselves, we don’t have that much to spare as it is.

But I ask you to consider.. what if it was your child. What if you had to bring your child to the hospital, knowing that half of his/her brain was about to be disconnected? How would you feel? How much help would you need?

They’re a strong family. I know that just by reading Gina’s posts and articles. But as strong as they are, they’re going to need a little support as they continue on this journey.

If donating still isn’t something that you can do, then perhaps you could consider cards (bought or made), videos, pictures, flowers, toys or anything that you think might help to brighten up the hospital room which will be home to Jackson for some time following the surgery.

If you have something that you’d like to send, please send it to:

Special Happens / St. Aubin Family
9609 S. University Blvd., #630303
Littleton, CO 80163

 

Please visit the Jackson’s Journey website and read about why this is necessary, how they prepare for it and… what comes next.

Don’t do it for me. Do it for Jackson, because he doesn’t deserve these problems but he does deserve our help.

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Pharmacologic Agents May Trigger Autism in a Genetically Predisposed Individual

By on June 15, 2012 in Autism News, Research

The exact cause of autism is not known, but studies support a strong genetic predisposition of the disorder. The development of autism is traced to the presence of genetic abnormalities especially on the genes that affect the neural signaling in the brain. The presence of family history of autism may increase the risk of the development of the disorder in succeeding generations and twins also have a greater chance to have autism when the other twin is affected.

Along with genetics, environmental factors are also seen as causes of autism. This may include exposure of the pregnant mother to certain chemicals such as phthalates, pesticides, heavy metals, infectious diseases, phenols, smoking, alcohol, vaccines, flame retardants and other toxic substances. Pregnant mothers who are exposed to these factors during the first trimester when organogenesis or the formation of the brain takes place may have offspring with autism. However, there are no strong evidence of these occurrences.

The development of autism tends to happen during the early life as early as infancy. Signs of autism are usually observed even during infancy and the signs tend to manifest more as the child grows. Not all people with genetic predisposition to autism may develop the condition; however, a study revealed that normal people with genetic predisposition for autism may eventually develop the disorder when they are exposed to certain pharmacologic agents.

This finding was seen in a recent study conducted at the Idaho State University. The study involved the use of fathead minnows, a variety of fish, which have similar gene expression as humans in terms of autism. The study revealed that when these fish were exposed to certain pharmacologic agents, the gene expression profiles were affected, which is related to the development of autism.

These pharmacologic agents tend to be medications used to treat neurological disorders. These include fluoxetine, an antidepressant drug with a class of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor; carbamazepine, an anticonvulsant drug; and venlafaxine, a Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor.

The study further showed that these pharmacologic agents only affected the gene expression associated with autism spectrum disorders, which are largely genetically predisposed. In conclusion, these agents may just trigger autism in genetically predisposed individuals when taken in adequate amounts to cause autism.

While the exact cause of autism is unknown, it is essential that people know their family history of diseases in order to avoid potential risk factors that may lead to the development of disorders. In line with autism, people who have a family history of the disease should as much as possible avoid pharmacological and environmental agents that may trigger autism later in life. Also, pregnant mothers should also avoid these factors to ensure that their offspring may not develop the disorder especially when genetic predisposition is present.

Autism is not a disease that can just go away or can be treated. Autism is a lifelong disorder that may affect the learning abilities of children. Although the symptoms can be reduced and the child may have maximum abilities, preventing autism is still more essential.

About the Author

Dr. Amarendra, the author is freelance writer. He writes at dental implants and www.dentalimplantsblog.co.uk.

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Detecting Autism in Children

By on June 11, 2012 in Autism

Autism is a condition affecting the neural development of a child that may lead to problems in social interaction and behaviors. Every parent would want their children to grow normally and knowing that your child has autism becomes very difficult to accept.

Children who are found to exhibit autism as early as eighteen months have better treatment outcomes to help them thrive, grow and learn to be the best that they can. Nevertheless, parents should never lose hope no matter what the child’s age is because treatments for autism always help children if treatments are coupled with good parenting and understanding the condition of the child. In this line, it is important for parents to understand autism and how to detect it early in children.

All about Autism

Autism includes a spectrum of disorders that include similar symptoms that vary on the extent or severity. Autism may affect the child’s ability to interact with others, play or talk. Children with autism have varied impairments from a single impairment to several problems that give children a lot of obstacles to meet. Despite the differences in children with autism, the most common characteristics of children with this disorder include:

  1. Problems in communication, either verbal or non-verbal
  2. Problems in establishing relationships with other people and the environment
  3. Problems in behaviors

Detection of Autism

The detection of autism relies greatly on parents. Parents are the child’s companion 24 hours a day and seven days a week so warning signs of autism is usually observed by parents more than anyone else. Parents may also see some problems in their child that a pediatrician may not see so parents really have a huge role to play in the detection of autism. The following are the important tips that you can do in order to detect autism early in your child:

  • Observe your child’s developmental milestones

Since autism may lead to developmental delays, although not relative, observing the milestones of your child is the first thing that you can do while the child is still an infant. Observe when your child first smiled, giggled, talked, and others. You may want to inform your pediatrician all these things to tell you if it is normal or not. Also, look into some types of regression in your child because this may be a very serious sign for autism. For instance, your child already started to say mommy or daddy and as she grows, she suddenly stopped using those words. This may be a warning sign of autism that you need to refer to your pediatrician immediately.

  • Take action in every problem you see

Any delay that you see in your child requires actions. It is important to have an idea on what are the normal milestones of children in order to compare your child’s achievements to normal development.

  • Trust your intuitions

Never underestimate your intuitions if you see problems in your child. Sometimes, even doctors miss to see red flags in your child so you should always refer to your doctor any instincts that you have.

  • Never wait for your child to outgrow it

Waiting for your child to become normal like other children just makes you lose the right time for your child to improve. If you see some problems today, this is the right time for your child to have some therapies to maximize their growth and development.

To make it easier to detect autism symptoms, here are the most common manifestations of a child with autism:

  • Absence of eye contact
  • Does not smile
  • Does not respond to sound or name
  • Does not visually follow objects
  • Does not wave goodbye or make other gestures
  • Does not make noises if he or she needs your attention
  • Does not imitate facial expressions and movements
  • Does not respond to or initiate cuddling
  • Does not share enjoyment with other people
  • Does not reach out to other people
  • Does not ask for help for basic needs

These are important signs to be observed in children in order to detect autism early in life and improve treatment outcomes.

About the author

Dr. Amarendra is a regular contributor to AccessRx.com,  a safe and secure online medication facilitator and health blog.

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