I Don’t Need To Explain But You Should Know

“Did you try to abort when you were pregnant?” It hurts lots when people, especially those you though knew you well, give a conclusion about what you may have done that caused your child to have disability (autism, I still find it hard to say the words). This was a question of one of my best friends in high school at our recent meeting after not seeing each other for years.

I know she doesn’t mean any harm when she asked this, but sometimes people do say things they don’t really think about. Good thing my other best friend, who saw me through my pregnancy was there and told her that I cling to this pregnancy like my life depended on it.

God forbid, what a horrible thought, despite having a child unwed, I have never ever thought of doing abortion in my entire life, even if it meant my family disowning me (which my father did and I live away from home for the duration of my pregnancy until my daughter was 6 months old), I will never ever think of doing abortion ever.
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Here is what you should know:

There is an alarming increase of children with autism all over the world, and despite modern technologies, the root of this mental deficiency remains unknown and unclear. However studies show that there are four risk factors identified that was associated with but not the cause of autism:
1. Genetic History – It has been shown that 30%-50% of autism cases are inherited. You might want to do a little homework and ask relatives did any or other family members experience any autism symptoms. When you visit your doctor be sure have this information available so your doctor can make an accurate autism diagnosis.

2. Risk factors in pregnancy and delivery. It is suspected that women with first trimester infections and lack of oxygen in delivery are risk factors that contribute to autism but are not causes. Make sure you have any pregnancy abnormalities available when you see your doctor.

3. Fragile X Syndrome – researchers have attributed 3% of the autism to this disorder.

4. Gene Mutation – This cause it what researchers are looking for. It seems there are a number of genes that are associated with brain function that may “mutate” to cause autism. It is unclear how these genes mutate. Read more about autism gene research.

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Aside from those risk factors identified, I have a personal theory though, I believe it has something to do with the vaccines and supplements the doctors recommend for pregnant women to take during pregnancy and also some vaccines given to children. It was recorded all over the world that there is an alarming increase in numbers of children diagnose with autism in the last decade.

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People seem to not understand well what autism is and the way Kids Help describe it is a good definition that everyone could easily understand especially it is written for kids. Here are some exerps:

Autism a mental disability that causes kids to experience the world differently from the way most other kids do. It’s hard for kids with autism to talk with other people and express themselves using words. Kids who have autism usually keep to themselves and many can’t communicate without special help.

They also may react to what’s going on around them in unusual ways. Normal sounds may really bother someone with autism — so much so that the person covers his or her ears. Being touched, even in a gentle way, may feel uncomfortable.

Kids with autism often can’t make connections that other kids make easily. For example, when someone smiles, you know the smiling person is happy or being friendly. But a kid with autism may have trouble connecting that smile with the person’s happy feelings.

A kid who has autism also has trouble linking words to their meanings. Imagine trying to understand what your mom is saying if you didn’t know what her words really mean. It is doubly frustrating then if a kid can’t come up with the right words to express his or her own thoughts.

Autism causes kids to act in unusual ways. They might flap their hands, say certain words over and over, have temper tantrums, or play only with one particular toy. Most kids with autism don’t like changes in routines. They like to stay on a schedule that is always the same. They also may insist that their toys or other objects be arranged a certain way and get upset if these items are moved or disturbed.
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Tasha has this mannerism, when in an unfamiliar environment to cover her ears. Another thing mannerism she has is to make sounds from her lips; Jeff calls it the dolphin language, since it sounds like what a dolphin sound like. One peculiar thing she repetitively do also is to play and wiggle strings or anything long and she do them in pairs.

She is also fixated with our electric fan; she likes to bang walls when bored. Instead of saying what she wants she does hand guiding or just do or get whatever she wants, which is actually good since she learns to be independent. Her tantrums only occur when she wants to do something like sleep or eat and can’t express it or nobody paid attention to her.
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Autism Spectrum Disorders (or types of autism): Info from Autism Support Network

Asperger syndrome: A milder form of autism where children tend to isolate themselves socially and are somewhat eccentric. They have difficulty with verbal communication and have interests that are much channeled.

If an infant does not cuddle, make eye contact or respond to affection and touching, or have abnormal responses to a combination of senses; such as hearing, balance, smell, taste and reaction to pain, parents should be seriously concerned.

This lack of responsiveness may be accompanied by an inability to communicate appropriately, and by a persistent failure to develop two-way social relationships. The language skills may be poor, even nonexistent, sometimes repeating words or phrases in place of normal language or using gestures and pointing instead of words.

Pervasive Developmental Disorder and not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) – This child has autism but doesn’t meet the criteria for high functioning autism.

High-Functioning Autism – This child has autism but has normal learning and cognitive and learning skills. Language development is difficult initially but they become proficient eventually.

Rett’s Syndrome – This disorder affects only female and is extremely rare affecting only one in 100,000 children. This disorder starts with hand wringing movements that are so dramatic that a child may have problems feeding themselves. These children may also develop the criteria for autism as well.