April is Autism Awareness month and this is a growing problem here in the United States. "According to Dr. Nancy J. Minshew, an autism researcher at the University of Pittsburgh and one of the co-chairs of the Pennsylvania Autism task force, there are some 73,000 people with autism in Pennsylvania, most of them adults. Although autism was first identified in 1943 its cause is still unknown." We are proud Parents of a child with Autism. We have an Autism Epidemic on our hands with 1 out of every 166 children receiving the diagnosis according to the Center for Disease Control. This shows up around the age of 3 and develops in boys more often then girls. When Matthew was born he was developing, as normal till around the age of 3 were he was diagnosed with developmental Apraxia of speech and epilepsy. The seizures and speech delay were our first clue that something was not right. As years went by our battle with the epilepsy was our main focus and we thought that was why his speech was delayed. At the age of 8 he was diagnosed with autism and that was word that would ring in our ears for the rest of our life. When you see Matthew he looks normal until you really look and see how he talks and how he is socially. His big problem is a lack of being able to communicate and when in pain he can’t tell anyone. He gets distracted, frustrated, and frightened and doesn’t know why. This little guy will feel this why all day, everyday of his life. Kim and I have asked the questions why us? Why our son? I believe that this just didn’t happen to us but is Gods plan. Today, I am working 40 plus hours plus for a great company that really understands that family comes first. Kim went to College to be an Elementary teacher but as things in life changed and a lot of prayer she with God’s guidance pushed her to teach Children with Autism.The thing you can do to help is contact your legislators and ask them to support funding and legislation to help these children & Adults with Autism. Our goal in life is to educate and get the word out to as many people as possible. We share our story to help other parents that live the same life we do as a parent of an Autistic Child. If you can do one thing to help its as simple as understanding Autism and the demands it has on parents. I read a study awhile back and the average parent that has a child with autism will change jobs every 5 years because of the lack of understanding and demands put on parents. We know that God has a plan for everyone but the gift he gave us is one we will never question. Please say a prayer for those that don’t know the Lord.
Read the original website from 1999 ALL ABOUT MATTHEW |
