DON'T PANIC! it's just worse than we thought, or so we think?

So yesterday the Autism cosmos was rocked by yet again, a NEW set of numbers. One in fifty children ages 6-17 has Autism, encompassing all forms of the disorder from mild Aspergers to classically severe non-verbal Autism. As usual boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed than girls. A interesting note about this "revelation" is that it doesn't even include kids under six years old. Which is a pretty typical age for diagnosis.

I read five different online write ups about this new diagnosis rate and they all say the same thing. DON'T PANIC, DON'T PANIC, hey did I mention, KEEP THE MOTHER EFFER CALM! Each of the articles disputed the study based on the fact that it was a phone survey, answered by parents and not providers or school districts. Stupid parents, everyone knows they totally over diagnosing their own children and that schools and doctors have ALWAYS been totally on top of the Autism epidemic (please mentally insert sarcastic cough here).

Now, lets do a little critical thinking. First the articles state "Health officials say the new number doesn't mean autism is occurring more often. But it does suggest that doctors are diagnosing autism more frequently"
(of course they didn't interview doctors so how does that work?) then they say "Still, CDC officials believe the survey provides a valid snapshot of how many families are affected by autism, said Stephen Blumberg, the CDC report's lead author". I'd say that is a pretty contradictory statement. Is this study indicative of rising Autism rates or not? Do we chose to believe, GASP, that parents are capable of accurately reporting what is really affecting families, pish-posh I say!

My thought are, well lets see? What if the 1 in 88 is the right number and not 1 one 50? Well does better diagnosis rate still account for the drastic explosion of new cases of Autism? Is the 1 in 110 statistic right? At what point are we going to look to something OTHER than better diagnosis? At what levee are we going yell FLOOD!? When do we PANIC?! When, really, it's a serious question? When will the CDC, AAP and other organizations think it's time PANIC? For me, it was five years ago when my son stopped talking and couldn't poop to save his life (or mine), PANIC hit me dead in the gut.

So many families are drowning in a sea of Autism PANIC, even if you dispute this newest number you cannot dispute the graphs dire freakish skyward climb. So please, critical thinking people, it's time to PANIC!

If your interested to know, they DIDN'T call and interview me for that study.

Here are a few of the web article I reviewed: Peruse with a critical eye.

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr065.pdf
http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/03/20/autism_one_in_50_kids_are_autistic_according_to_the_cdc.html
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/03/autism_survey_finds_1_in_50_am.html
http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2013/03/20/autism-prevalence-is-now-at-1-in-50-children/
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50143206n

Autism, the SICK and the SAD

What Bronchitis FEELS like!

Bronchitis. 

I'm up late. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, not weak enough apparently. Probably due to the steroids I'm now taking. You see I'm battling my second bout of Bronchitis in three months and this latest stint has lasted just over three weeks. I've spent three weeks at home, hardly leaving and doing nothing but the basics, REALLLLLLY getting our money out of our Netflix subscription. I'm having a bit of cabin fever, ok I feel like a banshee is wailing inside me urging me to leave the confines of my house. Unfortunately a round of "I know where your ticklish" leads to coughing fits for myself and one half of my brood. My youngest is sick too, fun.


My time on my sick couch got me thinking, why have I become so susceptible to colds lately? The obvious answer is stress. I'm planning a wedding on a shoe-string-strand budget. I'm trying to be involved at my children's school. I'm trying to understand and implement J's ABA programs better at home and in general. I'm trying to educate myself to become a birth assistant. I'm also doing a full time online college course. Ideally I would like more time to advocate for Midwifery and Autism but it seems I'm just making it through the daily "too-do's" to enable my families existence.

Thank God, we don't have a dog!

I have too much stress, painfully obvious, I know. Over this last bout of yuk I cut back. I didn't blog, stress grades, deal with wedding stuff and yet I still remained sick. So again on my sick couch I began to think about what was keeping me "down". People may read this and think yeah  she's nuts (nothing new there, and again MY place to vent, so think what you will) but I think I'm sad about Jonathan's Autism and the world in general.

Alex, chained and medicaided. 

As if my last blog post couldn't say it more clearly (www.autismspewage.blogspot.com/2013/02/utopia-my-personal-hell.html)   I don't think people with disabilities get a fair shake in this world. Some would argue that is natural selection. I would like to punch those people in the face. I carry around with me the knowledge of what this world offers people with no defense and it scares the hell out of  me. Just this week I read about a mother taking her fourteen year old Autistic son to a hospital because of distended bowel and gut pain. They locked him in isolation, shackled him to the bed and called the Department of Children and families on her! Simply because she wanted proper medical treatment for her child. www.ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-942306 SERIOUSLY TERRIFYING STUFF!

It really makes me think, what if we as a people could see the forest for the trees? What if we stopped injecting known neuro-toxins into our BABIES, stop feeding them garbage that was made in a lab and not grown in the soil, stop treating poison as if it were food, stop spraying poison on actual food? What if every person could stop taking money and rationalizing and justifying the essential nature of what is right away? If every person actively decided to chose to do the right thing, not the simple easy thing, but the right thing? What would our world be like?

It seems to me that some people are essentially greedy, deluding themselves that "their" decisions don't matter because its easier, cheaper and more convenient to not pay attention, give a dam, try or care. Looking at Alex Spourdalakis is hard, so why do it? With every "soda-pop" purchase, with every unquestioned medical procedure with every dollar given to a useless charity you reinforce a system that poisons more and more innocent children (and some adults too) everyday. The simple acknowlegdement of that statement just made my T-cells drop.

Please don't misunderstand, I'm happy. I have two beautiful boys. I'm working towards my goals. We continue to be blessed to find the right people and resources to help Jonathan on his journey to recovery. I have a supportive spouse who encourages my "down with the man ideology". My moments of joy are unearthly. Every funny phrase J gives us is a miracle. Every moment of wonder blossoming on his face is our universe. Every game of tag between bothers is to be cherished. I live in these moments.

THESE moments!

But this cosmic joy isn't without a price tag though. J's autism is the cost. We pay the price. So who gets the benefit? Well I have my theories. Even with that said we are among the lucky few, the informed doers who keep trying but what about kids like Alex? I guess my point is I'm sick of being sick over being sad about Autism. I'm sick of the system that allows the helpless to be hurt.

First DO NO HARM! Medical community you are failing!

Please see this website to learn more about Alex:
www.ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-942306