Aspies For Freedom

A news item out today quotes amazing figures, that the rate of autism is doubling every four years, also that it now stands at 1 in 166 kids. According to this theory all children with be autistic by about 30 years time.
This is where "science" and "mathematics" meets "media bullshit" head on.

"Author speaks hope to those living with autism"
By Hope Anderson
Oct 30, 2004

Lynn Hamilton's son couldn't speak to her.

Two-year-old Ryan's ear-splitting screams signaled his hunger. For what, he couldn't tell her.

When given Matchbox toy cars, he would only line them up, side by side. He didn't know how to play.

Just before his third birthday, Ryan was diagnosed with autism, a disorder that hampers kids' ability to socialize, communicate and learn. At that time, Hamilton's only connection with the disorder was Dustin Hoffman's performance in "Rain Man."

She and her husband, Roger, were devastated.

"Every hope and dream we had ... flew out the window," she said.

But she didn't stop there. She began "Operation Rescue Ryan."

Hamilton, the author of "Facing Autism," a guidebook for parents, spoke Saturday to about 85 people at St. Rose Catholic Church in Longview about finding hope and help in the trying times of raising autistic children.

The bubbly, magnetic woman with an easy smile uses her own story -- her son Ryan's story -- as the example that autism is treatable.

"There is no magic cure or magic pill, but there is hope and there is change," she said.

Her message is especially poignant, she said, considering the recent sharp increase in autism cases. Currently, one out of 166 children have the disorder, she said. Five years ago, one out of 500 children had it. Twenty years ago, it was one out of 3,000, she said.

Hamilton said the number of children with the disorder is growing 26 percent each year.

"Think about that," she said. "Every four years, the number is doubling."

That "epidemic" will create a future burden for the government, she said. One case of autism will cost taxpayers $2 million over the autistic person's lifetime, she said.

In her book, she outlines how she and her husband, who live in Colorado Springs, Colo., found aid for Ryan with specialized therapy, called Applied Behavioral Analysis, and a dietary program geared for autistic children.

Therapists helped her son regain his childhood, spending 40 hours per week working on the basics: sitting, following basic commands, and eventually, speaking.

http://www.tdn.com/articles/2004/10/31/a...news04.txt

after reading this article: should i be angry or laugh?

25% each year, well what is that kind of wrongly-application-of-statistics? one on 166 pff, so after a few years we will be living in an autistic village.... I really dont know where that comes from. <<Every dream flew out of the window.>> well that explains enough about how narrowminded those people are.....

THe article also let me think about what Rainman has as a function. Rainman as our rolemodel?

Hey, I hope it's true; lets take over the world!

Woo, evolution in action.  

Yet another example of sensationalist reporting. I have noticed though, even in otherwise quite good books and articles, that they refer to autistic "disorders". I believe it would be more accurate to refer to these as "conditions".

Yes, some other people have suggested that as well, such as in a recent article called Don't Use the D.  The author argues that autistics should never use the D word and should campaign to make it as socially incorrect as the use of offensive racial terms.

"Hope"? From reading the article, sounds closer to "heck".

Well, my ferrets can't tell me what they're thinking, but I still love them. Would it seriously hurt this woman to feed her kid?

That does not mean you do not know how to play. You can play whatever way you want to. I happened to like making Duplo (like Legos, only four times larger) ducks when I was not much older than Ryan, and my parents had little or no problem with that.

"Socialize, communicate, and learn?" I learn better than most NTs I know!

And what did they dream of? Ryan socializing too much, vandalizing bathroom stalls, and playing KISS FM at one thousand decibels? Sounds like it.

And why would we want to take a magic cure or a magic pill? I like myself just the way I am, although I probably would not be forced to be cured. If I ever was, I would just run off.

nd who came up with the "1 in 166" number? CAN, right? Then it just spread from there into the media.

Sure, if you're a curbie.

ABA is abusive from what I heard and the GFCF diet sounds like quackery. And spending 40 hours a week on stuff like that? They're acting like they are training a dog!

To Lynn Hamilton: Turn yourself in to the nuthouse, let Amy have your kid, and get a dog (if the nuthouse allows one)!

How many people have 40 hours a week to do ABA on a child? As far as I'm concerned, the only behaviour from this Ryan I would have wanted to get rid of was the screaming: partly because I have sensory issues with this kind of noise and partly because it would annoy the neighbours and they might complain and/or retaliate with loud noise of their own.

However, if feeding him would stop it (and as long as it was within reason) then why didn't she give him some food? Even if it were between meals, she could have given him something small that wouldn't have spoilt his appetite. It might also have been the case that he was better off having several small meals per day rather than 3 larger ones.

I can't see what harm he was doing lining up his toy cars - I have toy V-dubs lined up at my workstation at work. I hope when he gets older, he does play Kiss at loud volumes.

"How many people have 40 hours a week to do ABA on a child?"

They dont do it themselves mainly, they hire 'therapists' to do it at great expense. Many of these families then complain of the amount of debt they have from that, and thats why they want it to be government funded.

I can't see any evidence that the boy was unhappy before they started this "treatment." Apart from when he was hungry, but who is happy when hungry? So he lined up his toy cars rather than "playing" with them. So what? If he enjoyed it, that's playing isn't it? If he was bashing people over the head with them, then that behaviour would need to be addressed, but why couldn't they just let him be?

Stupid parents?

"Lynn Hamilton's son couldn't speak to her.

Two-year-old Ryan's ear-splitting screams signaled his hunger. For what, he couldn't tell her.

When given Matchbox toy cars, he would only line them up, side by side. He didn't know how to play. "

Kids usually get hungry around the same times everyday.  Most toddlers prefer to eat small meals and snacks between at mid-morning and afternoon.   A two-year old that can't talk usually can gesture or point to what they want.  Anyway most of the time, kids can just get used to what you give them to eat and like to eat much the same thing all the time.   They do not specifically have to say "mommy, I would like a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich."  I would just make it and put it in front of them at the regular meal or snack time.  The kid screams because that is what he has learned works.  All the other signs get ignored and there must be no regular routine if the child has to scream before he gets fed.  

My three yr old nephew is deaf and screams alot.   He had to compete for attention with three older siblings.  He also does not speak well, does not have a sense of volume control and his parents will not allow him to learn to sign.  If he learned to sign he might be less frustrated.  

Most kids will play "car" by driving it around and making "vroom" noises if you show them how.  I never pretended that it was a real car or a doll was a real baby, that just seemed stupid to me.  

Blaming all the bad parenting on ADHD or autism is really pathetic.  What a contrast to the baby potty training people who do not use diapers.  They watch their children and babies for signs that they are going to go and then put them over the pot.

But I don't think the government should be funding ABA.

I'm not sure how potty training got in here but mum only used nappies during the day for us until we could walk around well. Then she put us into little pants (bloomer type) except for night nappies.

This was because it was a warm climate and we could play outside a lot, she didn't have carpets or expensive furniture and she had a lot of kids. We soon learnt it was uncomfortable to have wet pants and how to use the potty and it saved her a bit of washing.

This was in the days before disposables mainly - they were just starting to get popular when my little sister (now 34) was a baby.