We have a son who is on the autism spectrum. As parents, we have repeatedly been told that he doesn't look autistic. People say that he "looks fine". We have seen the looks of surprise when people discover that Hunter is on the spectrum. We have dealt with people who refuse to accept that he is on the spectrum and that he is not like other boys his age. We have heard it from family, friends and former pastors.
So, we ask you. What does autism look like?
We would suggest to you that each and every person who is on the spectrum will reveal to you a different picture of autism. People with autism are affected in varying ways and also to varying degrees. Boys are affected diffently than girls are. Research is beginning to understand this better. Some people have greater difficulty communicating verbally than other people do. It is not uncommon for someone afflicted with autism to have vision disorders. Some people are borderline brilliant in math, music or science. There are parents who work tirelessly with their autistic child trying different types of therapy, diets, etc... and our hearts go out to them. We believe that children are a gift from God and we are thankful to have both of our children. We would also suggest to you that Hunter is "fine". Granted, he may act differently than other children in some areas and his brain may function differently than "normal" children (whatever that is) but Hunter is the perfect boy for our family. However, once people get to know him, they realize that in many ways he just like other other boys his age.
Hunter also has some OCD behaviors. When he was younger, we thought that he was going to wear out all of the light switches in our house because he would have to turn on and off the light several times before entering the room. This was especially the case when going to the bathroom. He sees things in "black and white". He has a difficult time with change and functions best when there is routine. He needs to know what's scheduled to happen tomorrow (or where we may go) so that he can prepare for it. If his senses are overstimulated, due to alot of activity, we keep an eye on him to make sure that he is not showing signs of distress. If he is around alot of people, such as an overcrowded mall or at our old church, he has gone into the fetal position in an effort to escape. He also has a hard time with when things don't make sense or follow the rules which he has learned. For example, reading was interesting when he was younger because the English language is full of examples where the normal rules just don't apply. In some ways, exceptions are the rule.
He also has a hearing sensitivity. Certain sounds and especially loud noises really bother him. As you can imagine, having a sister who has to tendency to be loud when she is having fun doesn't go well with him. Certain activities, such as VBS at church, are very difficult for him due to the noise.
Hunter has vision issues where his brain doesn't recognize certain colors. For instance, he sees gray and tan as the same color. He has adjusted to this and we have learned to not correct him when what he sees is different that what we see. He cannot tell the difference so correcting him would only frustrate him.
Like many boys his age, Hunter loves science. He is fascinated with how things works and is interested in most animals. The animals he very much dislikes are spiders and insects. He does really well in reading and spelling, as well.
For the longest time, his favorite animal has been a turtle. There is a little bit of irony here as he would prefer to just stay in his shell and never come out. As parents, we try to push him so that he doesn't stay in his shell. However, we have learned over the years when he has reached his limit and to allow him to have quiet time.
So, what does autism look like? For the many families with children afflicted by the disorder, it looks like them. For our family, autism looks like Hunter:
For more information about austism, please visit the following site: http://www.autismspeaks.org/
So, we ask you. What does autism look like?
We would suggest to you that each and every person who is on the spectrum will reveal to you a different picture of autism. People with autism are affected in varying ways and also to varying degrees. Boys are affected diffently than girls are. Research is beginning to understand this better. Some people have greater difficulty communicating verbally than other people do. It is not uncommon for someone afflicted with autism to have vision disorders. Some people are borderline brilliant in math, music or science. There are parents who work tirelessly with their autistic child trying different types of therapy, diets, etc... and our hearts go out to them. We believe that children are a gift from God and we are thankful to have both of our children. We would also suggest to you that Hunter is "fine". Granted, he may act differently than other children in some areas and his brain may function differently than "normal" children (whatever that is) but Hunter is the perfect boy for our family. However, once people get to know him, they realize that in many ways he just like other other boys his age.
Hunter also has some OCD behaviors. When he was younger, we thought that he was going to wear out all of the light switches in our house because he would have to turn on and off the light several times before entering the room. This was especially the case when going to the bathroom. He sees things in "black and white". He has a difficult time with change and functions best when there is routine. He needs to know what's scheduled to happen tomorrow (or where we may go) so that he can prepare for it. If his senses are overstimulated, due to alot of activity, we keep an eye on him to make sure that he is not showing signs of distress. If he is around alot of people, such as an overcrowded mall or at our old church, he has gone into the fetal position in an effort to escape. He also has a hard time with when things don't make sense or follow the rules which he has learned. For example, reading was interesting when he was younger because the English language is full of examples where the normal rules just don't apply. In some ways, exceptions are the rule.
He also has a hearing sensitivity. Certain sounds and especially loud noises really bother him. As you can imagine, having a sister who has to tendency to be loud when she is having fun doesn't go well with him. Certain activities, such as VBS at church, are very difficult for him due to the noise.
Hunter has vision issues where his brain doesn't recognize certain colors. For instance, he sees gray and tan as the same color. He has adjusted to this and we have learned to not correct him when what he sees is different that what we see. He cannot tell the difference so correcting him would only frustrate him.
Like many boys his age, Hunter loves science. He is fascinated with how things works and is interested in most animals. The animals he very much dislikes are spiders and insects. He does really well in reading and spelling, as well.
For the longest time, his favorite animal has been a turtle. There is a little bit of irony here as he would prefer to just stay in his shell and never come out. As parents, we try to push him so that he doesn't stay in his shell. However, we have learned over the years when he has reached his limit and to allow him to have quiet time.
So, what does autism look like? For the many families with children afflicted by the disorder, it looks like them. For our family, autism looks like Hunter:
For more information about austism, please visit the following site: http://www.autismspeaks.org/
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