ONTD

I think it's important that she talk about the process. She noticed that something seemed wrong and then she went to a doctor.

People also are still not completely in the loop on what autism is. My brother likes to "diagnose" me with autism because I'm a fucking oddball and he almost had my mom believing it until I was like, "bitches, I'm the exact opposite of non-verbal. I am an English major who has a pretty good sense of figurative language and sarcasm." People need more realistic examples of what this disease looks like.

She's getting that catwoman face like Adrienne from BH.

this. my brother and one of my good friends both have autism and the differences are insane.

this - autism is a spectrum, there isn't any one form of it.

My sister has high-functioning autism (think the technical diagnosis is PDD but it's on the spectrum) and while she certainly has her quirks, she goes to a normal school and hasn't needed additional help in the classroom since elementary school.

Tangential, but I remember there was so much controversy over the idea of subsuming Aspergers into the general autism spectrum. While there was some constructive debate, I thought a lot of it came across as people with Aspergers going, "Ewwww, don't put me in with the lower-functioning autistic people!"

MTE.

True. My brother is low-functioning, but I know plenty of autistics who go on to lead very fruitful lives with the right instruction and care.

AGREED.

My neighbor is autistic, and he just graduated high school, has a corporate job, drives to work everyday, goes to the gym etc.

my brother has asperger's and you'd really never know

IKR.

Jacqueine "Queen of the Water-Works" Laurita is a hypocrite.

Melissa slammed Tre, too, when it's clear as day that Melissa is a source for most Us Weekly articles about Tre and Juicy.

Teresa could be complimenting them in an article and they'd all still find it wrong and bash her for talking to the "press".

Mte

Exactly.

I'm very sorry for Jacqueline and her family for going through this, but the Manzo/Lauritas are still the biggest hypocrites on TV.

LordT, only way I will start watching full time again is if we get a NYC style reboot next season. Tre and Melissa can stay but Hagroline's miserable ass, non mother fucking factor Kathy, and Jac need to exit stage left.

BLOOP BLOOP

she doesn't seem to really want to stay a cast member tho.
i mean, between not showing up at the last reunion and just being overall miserable with how fake teresa's gotten, she'd be a lot happier without the show. maybe not without the paycheck, but definitely without the show.

I'm a horrible person for thinking this, but she probably did.

Omg that's my biggest fear for disabled or mentally ill children. The denial will only be worse if the child doesn't receive help right away.

I think you can still be in denial but getting your child help. I pray daily that my son has something else (mainly because they've told me my son will never talk to me) that maybe it could be something that gives me a little hope? but I still have my son in school, and OT, PT, Speech, and has been for a year now.

I used to be friends with a girl who REFUSED to believe that her eldest son might be having developmental difficulties. I begged and pleaded with her after watching him struggle. The poor boy was 4 and entirely without speech beyond grunts and hoots. You could see the frustration on his face and much of his misbehavior could be directly traced back to his inability to communicate.

Luckily there was an anonymous call to DCF *innocent whistle* and he started getting the help he needed. He's 9 now and still having a very hard time catching up to his peers in all areas. Heartbreaking.

she's always getting shit done to her face.

IA, she's starting to look weirdly cat-like.

seriously, i watched during the first season and i kept staring at this pic trying to figure out who this was and wtf was going on with her eyes

It's not even the same face

She was so pretty in the first season.

Asslee has no excuse. She's just a brat.

looks like a potato

spoiled insecure brat disease

Autism isn't just one disease, it's a very broad range, that's why recently, (the past 5-8 years) they've been referring to Autism as 'Autsim Spectrum Disorders'. The kids are like any other, if their behavior is allowed to deteriorate and bad habits are allowed to continue they will be come more difficult more obstinate etc. But using the right techniques, the right rewards, the right teaching tools the child will improve.

Last year I was assigned to be a one on one aide with a kindergartener who was running around his classroom, jumping off of chairs, hiding under the tables. He would throw a fit every time he had to go to PE.

But by not chasing him when he ran, redirecting his attention, using simple instructions, 'First work, then ipad/book time' he was able to start going the entire day without taking repeated breaks, without his teacher having to disrupt her lesson to try and corral him back into his seat.

Really with these kids it's just trying key after key after key into the lock that's their brain and trying to figure out one that works.

I'm really happy the early intervention worked for your brother though, I really, really wish more parents and families were more proactive like yours.

We had a Mom bring in a boy for kinder last week with maybe 20 words in his vocabulary and almost no impulse control and very poor fine motor skills they asked the Mom if his pediatrician had ever said anything to her and she said when he was three he was diagnosed with Autism. So I've been working with him this week and he's so freaking smart, almost no words but he's got most of the sound song down, 'Apple, Apple, Ah, Ah, Ah, etc.' Can determine patterns and shapes and it kills me to know that he'd be soooo much further ahead if we had gotten him when he was three.

Not necessarily. I'm glad that was the outcome for your brother but my niece is so low-functioning she still doesn't go to the bathroom by herself. She's 7 and wears diapers. She has no speech, just screams, wails and flails around. She's been diagnosed since about 2 as it was VERY apparent early on. Unfortunately, I think some kids with Autism are actually mentally handicapped as well. I think this is true with my niece because even tough she goes to school year round and has been through therapy there is absolutely no improvement.

"Anyway, my brother is a completely normal (well, he's a gifted kid) 13 year old now. Extremely talkative, extremely social. Very well-adjusted. No mental disorders or learning disabilities at all."

I'm happy for you and your brother but you should frame this more appropriately.
There is no "normal".

lol

she probably is finding the best people to work with her son, but a lot of parents (of all children) do worry about what will happen with their kid once they are older. to know your child has an increased risk to not be able to function without assisted care, and if the parent can't be there (death/illness/old age etc) it just is incredibly sad and scary.