the reality of autism
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What is autism? In Google search, the first thing that pops up is, “A mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts.” (Google) It doesn’t really give the whole story. An autistic child ends up having a completely different life than the rest of the people in the world.
One really great question asked is, “What causes autism?” Some people try to blame the parents explaining how if they were to be a better parent and be more careful during their pregnancy, they wouldn't be in that sort of situation. That isn't completely true. One great cause for autism is genetics. It is more likely for someone with the genetics of autism in their blood than for someone that doesn't to have an autistic child, but it isn't impossible for them to develop those genes over time. Most scientists agree with the heritable component of autism. Another known cause is specific environmental contact. In the article Autism Spectrum Disorder, written by Amarai, David and Courchesne, Eric it makes known of some possible environmental causes. He begins with Heavy metal toxicity, writing, “Heavy metal poisoning, particularly that involving mercury, results in symptoms similar to those of autism.”(Courchesne) Some of the other environmental causes stated in this article are, infectious disease and vaccinations.
How common is autism? Different forms of autism are quite common in the United States today. The prevalence rates for autism are increasing each day.(Autism Speaks) “Statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control … identify around one in sixty-eight American children as on the autism spectrum-a ten –fold increase in prevalence in forty years.” The author of Autism Speaks is saying the chances of autism are increasing every day. Autism is more common among boys than girls. There is a one out forty-two chance for boys and one out of one hundred eighty-nine chance for girls to be diagnosed with autism in the U.S. (Autism Speaks) “It affects over three million individuals in the U.S. and ten millions worldwide … Prevalence rates have increased ten to seventeen percent annually in recent years.” The explanation for these results are not yet discovered, but diagnosis and environmental influences are often considered to play a big part.
Having an autistic child affects the parents in many ways. Although the parents really love the child as their own, there are still hardships in the home. The parents struggles financially, emotionally, and relationship wise. Because they want the best for their child, they may put the child in a home if they aren't physically capable of taking care of the child on their own. Doing this, the parents would pay up to five hundred dollars per month to the home owner. If they do have the ability to take care of the child at their own home, they would still have to find a way to get funds to pay for extra hospital bills and a special school. Having an autistic child can have an impact on the parents emotionally toward each other. Sometimes the couple loves each other even more because of the fact that they are in the same boat, but for the most part, they end up falling farther and farther apart. It is hard for the parents to deal with everything that comes with having an autistic child (Sicile-Kira), “The constant and necessary advocacy at school, the fighting for service supports, the added financial burden, trying to handle behaviors and melt downs at home.” This sometimes causes them to getting a divorce or having an unhappy relationship with each other.
Having an autistic child can be a struggle. if you don’t know all there is to know about them and their disorder. They sometimes do more for us than we realize. Autistic children have a big effect in the United States today, but they are still a part of what makes our country the way it is.
Work Cited
Amarai, David and Courchesne, Eric. “Cause of Autism” Autism Help. Synapse. Dec. 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. http://www.autism-help.org/autism-causes.htm
Sicile-Kira, Chantal. “Autism – It’s a Family Thing.” Psychology Today. 26 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-autism-advocate/201003/autism- its-family-thing
“What is Autism? What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?” Autism Speaks. Jan. 2015. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism
“Google.” Google. Google. n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015 https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome- instant&rlz=1C1CHWA_enUS626US626&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF- 8#q=what+is+autism
One really great question asked is, “What causes autism?” Some people try to blame the parents explaining how if they were to be a better parent and be more careful during their pregnancy, they wouldn't be in that sort of situation. That isn't completely true. One great cause for autism is genetics. It is more likely for someone with the genetics of autism in their blood than for someone that doesn't to have an autistic child, but it isn't impossible for them to develop those genes over time. Most scientists agree with the heritable component of autism. Another known cause is specific environmental contact. In the article Autism Spectrum Disorder, written by Amarai, David and Courchesne, Eric it makes known of some possible environmental causes. He begins with Heavy metal toxicity, writing, “Heavy metal poisoning, particularly that involving mercury, results in symptoms similar to those of autism.”(Courchesne) Some of the other environmental causes stated in this article are, infectious disease and vaccinations.
How common is autism? Different forms of autism are quite common in the United States today. The prevalence rates for autism are increasing each day.(Autism Speaks) “Statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control … identify around one in sixty-eight American children as on the autism spectrum-a ten –fold increase in prevalence in forty years.” The author of Autism Speaks is saying the chances of autism are increasing every day. Autism is more common among boys than girls. There is a one out forty-two chance for boys and one out of one hundred eighty-nine chance for girls to be diagnosed with autism in the U.S. (Autism Speaks) “It affects over three million individuals in the U.S. and ten millions worldwide … Prevalence rates have increased ten to seventeen percent annually in recent years.” The explanation for these results are not yet discovered, but diagnosis and environmental influences are often considered to play a big part.
Having an autistic child affects the parents in many ways. Although the parents really love the child as their own, there are still hardships in the home. The parents struggles financially, emotionally, and relationship wise. Because they want the best for their child, they may put the child in a home if they aren't physically capable of taking care of the child on their own. Doing this, the parents would pay up to five hundred dollars per month to the home owner. If they do have the ability to take care of the child at their own home, they would still have to find a way to get funds to pay for extra hospital bills and a special school. Having an autistic child can have an impact on the parents emotionally toward each other. Sometimes the couple loves each other even more because of the fact that they are in the same boat, but for the most part, they end up falling farther and farther apart. It is hard for the parents to deal with everything that comes with having an autistic child (Sicile-Kira), “The constant and necessary advocacy at school, the fighting for service supports, the added financial burden, trying to handle behaviors and melt downs at home.” This sometimes causes them to getting a divorce or having an unhappy relationship with each other.
Having an autistic child can be a struggle. if you don’t know all there is to know about them and their disorder. They sometimes do more for us than we realize. Autistic children have a big effect in the United States today, but they are still a part of what makes our country the way it is.
Work Cited
Amarai, David and Courchesne, Eric. “Cause of Autism” Autism Help. Synapse. Dec. 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. http://www.autism-help.org/autism-causes.htm
Sicile-Kira, Chantal. “Autism – It’s a Family Thing.” Psychology Today. 26 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-autism-advocate/201003/autism- its-family-thing
“What is Autism? What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?” Autism Speaks. Jan. 2015. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism
“Google.” Google. Google. n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015 https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome- instant&rlz=1C1CHWA_enUS626US626&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF- 8#q=what+is+autism