Do We Still Need Autism Awareness?



You'll see a lot of things in April about autism awareness. You may think to yourself that it seems to be everywhere. Why would we need to be more aware of autism? It's on shirts at Walmart and in our news feeds and on television. Why is there still a need for it?

Because shoppers are still shocked and appalled by the "bad parenting" happening in stores when it's really the struggles of kids with autism that can't be helped. 

Because there are still kids on playgrounds avoiding the kids who are loud or flappy.

Because adults in public are still demanding a child say "please" before they can have something, without knowing if the child can speak. 

Because we are still criticizing autism parents who are often struggling to even get out of bed.

Because kids with autism are still being abused at schools where they aren't being protected.

Because adults are still stepping out of the way when a child elopes instead of stopping them to keep them safe. 

Because parents are being judged for medicating kids after they have tried everything else.

Because adults are still using the "r" word.

Because families are still dismissing concerns of new parents who know something is wrong.

Because there are still waiting lists for testing.

Because kids in certain areas are having to travel hours to get services.

Because the whole world needs a lessen on how to accommodate a child with unique needs.

Because even though many people are aware that autism exists, most don't understand.

They think autism is Max from Parenthood, or Shaun from The Good Doctor. They are aware of the Hollywood version of autism. They have no idea what real autism families actually go through or what they need. The stereotype that individuals with autism are all savants is simply untrue. While all humans have individual gifts, many will not be scientists or doctors. In reality, many autistic kids will spend their lives needing long term care. Many will never speak. Awareness is defined as "knowledge or perception of a situation or fact." I say it's time for people to move past perception and get to know those in the autism community. Until then, we will never fully reach acceptance.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Frog Update- The Results Are In

Image
Approaching the date of Frog's three year checkup Jason and I decided to tighten up on Leland's gluten free diet. That meant no cheating whatsoever. That may sound easy to some, but you can't really explain to a small child why he can't eat the same foods as his brother. Likewise it's not fair to an older child to have him eat his favorite foods far away from his little brother. We decided though, that it was the right choice despite the challenges. About a week after we started being insanely strict we started to see improvements. Frog began sleeping better and having less stomach problems. His sleep study was scheduled for two days later. It took a while to settle him down, but he actually took the ordeal like a champ. He endured the half hour of hooking him up without much protest. We were instructed that his cannula had to stay in, so I fought with it several times in the night. Aside from some occasional fussing he slept pretty well, just as he had done t...
Read more

I Hope You Know

Image
About six months after Daddy and I started dating he made an announcement. He said we were getting a chihuahua. He explained that his family's dogs had a litter of them and he had always wanted a white one. I told him that I really wanted it to be a girl. He said, "You're in luck, there is a girl that's white." The excitement began, and we impatiently awaited the call to come pick up our new addition. When your litter was six weeks old we were told you were weaned and we got the green light.  We drove all the way out to Jay and found a kiddie pool full of the smallest puppies I had ever seen. They pointed out which one was ours, and she was beautiful. She was also a little reserved. She stayed put in the pool and looked at us curiously. You pounced right to us, and beckoned us to play with you. It was that exact moment that you stole our hearts. Dad looked at me and asked what I thought. I told him that I was a little nervous that the first one would be stand offi...
Read more

Orifice Reducers

Image
Let's talk orifice reducers. An orifice reducer is the piece of plastic inside your bottle of Young Living essential oil. It allows you to pour the oil out one drop at a time. You might ask yourself, "Don't essential oils break down plastic?" Yes, they usually do, but not this kind. Young Living takes special care to only use really strong plastics with their oils to prevent leaching. You are not supposed to touch the orifice reducer. While it's true that YL essential oils don't expire, they can oxidize which will shorten the life of the oil. By touching the orifice reducer, you are shedding skin cells and dirt and whatever else into your oil. That will contaminate the oil and shorten its lifespan. Well, as Jen O'Sullivan says, "You have to know the rules, so you can break the rules." I touch my orifice reducers sometimes. However, I only do that with oils I know I'm going to use very quickly. If it's an oil that I replace every ...
Read more