ByMarcia Hinds
Children are recovering from autism and yet most doctors don’t even know this is possible. Finding the right doctor to treat the subset of autism our children suffer from still remains one of our biggest challenges. Autism is complicated and results from many medical issues combined. Because our medical community has become so specialized, more…
ByMarcia Hinds
When your kid has autism, the social skills are the last to come and the hardest to teach. Every behavior and every social skill had to be directly taught to Ryan. This was one of the hardest part of autism for me. We had to directly teach my son how to do things other kids…
ByMarcia Hinds
Because language comes later for children with autism, many of our kids struggle with reading comprehension. Even though my son is now an engineer, his weakness in this area was one of my main concerns when he was in elementary school. This worried me, since reading comprehension was part of almost every school subject. Ryan…
ByMarcia Hinds
Why are we all afraid to use prescription drugs to help our children? I used to be one of those parents who only wanted to use supplements and natural remedies. But I changed my mind. Some of our children need prescription drugs rather than supplements. I am thrilled for those who have recovered their kids with…
ByMarcia Hinds
Many of our children are extremely intelligent even though they can’t show us that because of the communication issue. It may look like the lights are on and nobody is home but that usually isn’t true. They are in there and hearing every word we say. But since they have limited speech and have trouble…
ByMarcia Hinds
Initially, it was hard to tell which interventions were working. How can you tell if a medication is working when your child has limited verbal ability and prefers his own inner world to the one where everyone else lives? Improvements in speech take time and the results are not immediately apparent. It takes at least…
ByMarcia Hinds
It is not like I woke up one day and BAM my kid was better. Although Ryan is now an aerospace engineer, his recovery from autism was S-L-O-W. It took years. After two steps forward, he’d take one step back. Sometimes it was two steps forward, three steps back. In the beginning of our autism…
ByMarcia Hinds
The road ahead Following years of intense medical and behavioral interventions Ryan is now employed as an engineer at a major aerospace company. But more importantly, he has friends and is happy. One of his bosses recently complimented him on his great people skills. Ryan and I had a good laugh over that one. My…
ByMarcia Hinds
One-sided conversations Since I was the only one talking, we never really had a conversation at all. Most of the time all I got was that blank stare. I continued to constantly talk for both of us, even though my son lacked the communication skills to respond or nod his head in understanding. And I…
ByMarcia Hinds
Getting past the grief Only parents have the determination, stamina, and commitment to take on the seemingly insurmountable task of recovery. We will keep working to help our children no matter how tired or discouraged we feel. No one else ever volunteers to do this job for you. And your child will not come out…
ByMarcia Hinds
When it comes to autism, don’t believe all you’re told… Your child has autism. Now what? As parents,we find ourselves in a unique, select group, the “Autism Club.” No one asks to become a member, but because of our kids, we were forced to be in the A-Club. Autism isn’t just a medical crisis; it…
ByMarcia Hinds
I wrote I Know You’re In There, Winning Our War Against Autism to help you understand this frightening thing we call “autism.” This article has some of what you need to know to make it off Autism Island. I was once where you are now. Devastated by this diagnosis and scared out of my mind for…