April is Autism Awareness month.
Facts Continued...
*Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
*Autism costs the nation over $35 billion per year, a figure expected to significantly increase in the next decade
*Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
*Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
*There is no medical detection or cure for autism
I would like to do a giveaway to one deserving family.
Facts Continued...
*Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
*Autism costs the nation over $35 billion per year, a figure expected to significantly increase in the next decade
*Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
*Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
*There is no medical detection or cure for autism
I would like to do a giveaway to one deserving family.
Here is how you can enter to win!
I want to celebrate the unique beauty that exists within a child with autism. Too often their potential is overshadowed by their disability, but I want to turn that around and shine a light on their true uniqueness with my camera. To do this I am donating a free mini photo session to a family who has been touched by autism. This free session will go to the winner of a special drawing on April 30th, 2011. Here are the details:
Shine a Light on Autism: Tell me either about your own family or a family that you know that has a child with autism. Tell me about their unique journey and the hurdles that they have confronted along the way. In order to raise as much awareness as possible, we ask that you be willing to share your story on my blog. I will post as many of your stories as I can during my weekly blog posts. Then, on April 30th at 12pm, one story will be randomly chosen as the winner and announced on both my blog and facebook page. The winner will receive a free 1 hour photo session with me, at a remote 60acre ranch, (free of loud noises and people, and lots of room to run around) including 25-35 images posted to your own private gallery on my website and a CD with a printing release. To enter the drawing please leave a comment with your story. All entries must be submitted by April 25th, 2010.
Also, you must re-post the link to this blogpost to help spread the awareness of Autism.
Photo Session must be redeemed by August 31, 2011
I want to celebrate the unique beauty that exists within a child with autism. Too often their potential is overshadowed by their disability, but I want to turn that around and shine a light on their true uniqueness with my camera. To do this I am donating a free mini photo session to a family who has been touched by autism. This free session will go to the winner of a special drawing on April 30th, 2011. Here are the details:
Shine a Light on Autism: Tell me either about your own family or a family that you know that has a child with autism. Tell me about their unique journey and the hurdles that they have confronted along the way. In order to raise as much awareness as possible, we ask that you be willing to share your story on my blog. I will post as many of your stories as I can during my weekly blog posts. Then, on April 30th at 12pm, one story will be randomly chosen as the winner and announced on both my blog and facebook page. The winner will receive a free 1 hour photo session with me, at a remote 60acre ranch, (free of loud noises and people, and lots of room to run around) including 25-35 images posted to your own private gallery on my website and a CD with a printing release. To enter the drawing please leave a comment with your story. All entries must be submitted by April 25th, 2010.
Also, you must re-post the link to this blogpost to help spread the awareness of Autism.
Photo Session must be redeemed by August 31, 2011
4 comments:
I am a mom of three amazing monkey boys... 6,3, and 2... My oldest two have PDD-NOS, a form of autism. When Sawyer was 16 months old he reacted badly to a vaccine and began to regress... he was our first and the regression was gradual so we didn't see it right away. We knew something was wrong and he was delayed but it took a year and a half of tears, meltdowns, and thinking I was the worst mother in the world for us to get the diagnosis. Our middle son Thatcher was typically developing until the day after he turned 18 months. He had a vaccine and the following day stopped talking... and turned into a different child completely. He would just scream for hours and hours... I had a fairly newly diagnose 4 year old and a newborn and we lived 4 hours from family and had a new business. To say the least we had hit a low, but praise God, He uses those low points to grow and bless us... we moved home, with my parents and three kids for 9 months... my husband found a steady job and now we are starting over... My boys have made amazing strides throughout this past year and a half. Thatcher now talks non-stop an Sawyer is doing amazing. More than anything we are just blessed to be surrounded by a community of friends and family who love our boys and celebrate their gifts and what makes them special. My husband and I are better people for knowing our sweet boys... they have taught us how to love unconditionally, to celebrate small victories and find joy in the "ordinary"... we are so blessed!
Ok well I am not even sure where to begin, Alex's story is so long that it's had to put into a short story but I will try my best. Alex was born November 1st, 2006 he was 7lbs 1oz, 21 inches in lenght and beautiful as could be. He was an amazing sleeper since day one, he was such a calm baby, perfect in my eyes, but what can I say I'm his mommy. Then 2 months later came time for his 2month check up and his vaccinations. This was the beginning of the worst experience of my life. He recieved 6 vaccines that day, a combination I should say of about 7-8 vaccines. That day Alex cried non-stop for almost 24hrs, which was very strange since he was not like this at all. After those 24hrs things seemed to go back to normal. Then a few days after he was taken to the ER because he was having trouble breathing, scary you ask? Very scary, but according to drs it wasn't anything serious, and sent us on our way. 4 month check up, same thing (expect the ER visit) same set of shots and same 24hr period of crying, 6 months same thing. I kept asking drs if this was normal and they kept reassuring me that it was, me being a 1st time mom I didn't know any better and I trusted the drs completly. When he turned 14 months, we were back at the drs, and once again more vaccines, this were the ones that started to show more abvious signs that something was wrong. Then about 2 months later Alex recieved another vaccine that he had not gotten at his 14 months check up, this one gave us horrible symptoms that I had no idea were related to vaccine injury, I feel so bad even saying all this because there is always that guilt of not knowing this could happen. Guilt of not investigating this more, but at the same time I think how could I research or know to research somthing I didn't kow was happening. By this time (16-18 months old) Alex was showing us more signs that something was wrong, he became very picky about food, about food textures, he developed sensitivies, sensory issues, wanted to be alone most of the time, lost eye contact, lost interest in kids and people in general, he was spinning constantly and flapping his arms throughout the day, he had regressed into autism. He was officinally diagnosed on March 31st 2009, that day will live with me for the rest of my life, that day all my dreams for my son were taken away from me, that day my heart broke into a million pieces, that day I truly knew what pain was. Since then we have been working non-stop to recover Alex from autism, first with biomedical and since November of last year (2010) with homeopathy. Alex has made lots of progress and that is a true blessing, a HUGE blessing. It has not been easy but not impossible either, I am sure that with faith and HOpE anything is possible, god has the power to change all things, we just have to believe.
Alex is still non-verbal (for now hopefully) but communicates through Sing language, thanks to Signing Times his world and ours is a much happier place, he is reading since he was 3yrs old, knows his number, and can put some words together. We still have a ways to go before we can say we have defeated autism but everyday we get a day closer, I have faith that one day my son will be able to speak to me and call me momma, tell me how this day was and tell me stories and all his dreams. I have lots of faith that one day that day will come, it's all a matter of time, in god's time. Till them I will keep going, keep fighting, keep hoping, and keep dreaming, I know that all his dreams and mine will be a beautiful reality one day. Autism is tough ot deal with but not tougher than a determined mom who will never give up on her son, and when I say never I mean never. There's is hope for our children, we just have to go out there and find a way to make HOPE strong and recovery a reality.
www.alexautismoysurecuperacion.wordpress.com Our blog just incase anyone wants to follow Alex's Journey out of Autism.
I have two wonderful boys that are 7 and 8. My 7 year old son Keenan was diagnosed with autism when he was 3. We knew something was wrong and on his 3 year old checkup we braced ourselves. Our pediatrician confirmed our fears and sent us to get an educational diagnosis. At the beginning they have you fill out this huge amount of paper work asking about every milestone and how your child is developing currently. Halfway through the paperwork I knew what they were going to say. Looking back (which is always easier to do) there were signs since birth. The process to get him diagnosed and to get help from early intervention took 5 months. We are not very patent people and the more we read the more we knew we could not wait. We hired a therapist to come 3 times a week and she told us stuff we could do between visits. We started with working on basic life and safety skills. The first one was to learn his name. Then came to stop when his name was called then to look at the person when they called his name and then next to come to the person calling his name. I know this sounds pretty basic but we worked on this daily and after about a month he was finally able to respond and come when his name was called most of the time. This was huge and allowed us to safely go out in public. We have overcome many obstacles and have many more to come but it is well worth it. He is now 7 and has came a long ways. He has friends, loves playing outdoors and last week at his school assembly he got a certificate for being the best speller in his class. I have learned so much from both my children but especially from Keenan. He has taught me patience and that things will happen in their own time and own way and that is okay. He has also taught me that words can be over-rated and there is so much more involved in communicating. Most importantly he has made us more aware that everyone just wants to be accepted and loved and that it is so easy to do if you just open your heart and mind.
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