Autism Awareness Month

     How many of you know that it’s Autism Awareness Month? Autism Awareness month has been going on since April of 1970. Some of you may not quite understand what Autism is. According to Autism Society “Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and affects a person’s ability to communicate and interact with others.”  Did you know that 1 out of every 100 children is diagnosed with autism and 1 out of every 70 boys is diagnosed with autism? Autism is a growing concern here in the United States and we need to do something about it. My niece was diagnosed with autism. We knew something was wrong with her when she was a baby because she didn’t cry very often and took her so long to walk, and then when it was time for her to talk, she never did. When she was three my brother and his wife took her to the doctor because they knew that there was something wrong with her and the doctor said that she was fine and that she would come around, she was just a slow learner. That was not the case at all. When she turned four she still had not developed mentally the way she was supposed to but they believed the doctor. Finally they decided to get a second opinion and when she was five she was diagnosed with autism. When she got to school she was enrolled in a special education program that was supposed to help her with her challenge. She is now fourteen years old and she still will not communicate. I don’t know what to think because my brother and his wife got a divorce and she will not let anyone in my family really be around her at all. My brother takes her every weekend. I visit her and she still will not communicate, but she is getting better about it. She will tell you when she wants something, such as a drink for instance, she will say “milk” or “Pepsi”, but she will not say full sentences and she gets frustrated because it is so hard for her to communicate. She will become angry and bite and scratch and have fits. It is as if she is trapped in a world inside her mind and she is trying desperately to escape and she can’t. She is not always mean though, she is usually very happy when I see her. She loves things that are shiny, so I like to bring her jewelry. She dangles it is front of her face in the light and laughs. It doesn’t seem as though she is improving anymore in the school that she is attending and my brother is trying desperately to get her into the Ozark Center for Autism so she can get the help she needs. I am attempting to do loads of research and talk to as many people as I can to see what I can do to help her if her mother will let me. Did you know that special care, including schooling, therapy, and at home assistance for families with an autistic child can cost anywhere from $3.5 billion to $5 billion a year? People don’t have that kind of money and because so many people are autistic, that is $90 billion or more a year in costs for the United States. Since April is Autism Awareness Month, many events are being hosted by different places, giving all proceeds to autism research. How many of you love wine? Well Macadoodles here in Joplin is hosting a wine tasting event on April 10, 2011 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and all proceeds will be going to the Ozark Center for Autism. Another event that is taking place is on April 16, 2011. This event is the 3^rd Annual Rummage Sale and will be taking place at Oak Pointe, 1114 Carrington Terrace in Joplin, which is also a benefit for the Ozark Center for Autism. Also in Springfield they have Cardinal tickets for sale to the Autism Awareness Game. Tickets are just $9 each. http://www.blogger.com/ to get more information or get your tickets! The next event is on Saturday, April 30, 2011. This event is the 4^th Annual Walk for Autism (Click link for information). This event will be taking place at the North Park Mall here in Joplin in the JC Penny Court. I will definitely be at this event, as I deeply support children with Autism. Every 15 seconds, a child is diagnosed with autism. Will you help support the cause?