tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post8400662018055995618..comments2024-02-13T21:31:57.980-04:00Comments on Facing Autism in New Brunswick: Severe Autism: Autism in the Shadows - Thank You Amy MackinAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05838571980003579163noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-5218138142639911992013-08-07T09:51:46.810-03:002013-08-07T09:51:46.810-03:00I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I ...I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I did this a few years ago, too. Every now and again, it will hit me. My father is 60, and even though I have an associates degree, a part-time job, am working towards a bachelors (a long and difficult endeavor, resulting in my leaving school twice and failing a class), and have a somewhat normal social life (for the first time in my whole life, at 24). But my parents and I am constantly reminded of the 24-year-olds that are light years ahead of me, with full-time jobs, masters, boyfriends and husbands, children, and who have long since outgrown their Mary Janes and their imaginary friends. My father tells me that he worries constantly about what will happen to ME after he dies. I can't even imagine how you, Harold, must feel about what will happen to Conor after you die. <br /><br />There are the obvious concerns, like where will my child live and who will keep him from running off. But there are also the more subtle concerns, like who will cuddle with him, play with him, and love him like I did? How will this person explain what happened to Mommy and Daddy when your time comes? Will he understand, or will he spend ten years after your passing wondering where Mommy and Daddy went? <br /><br />Another thorn in the side of parents of autistic children is social perception. Everybody wants to help the poor children, raise money for children, feel sympathy for cute little children. There is significantly less sympathy, funds, and support for children and adults once they are too old and violent to be cute, and people other than parents no longer have that parental instinct towards them. <br /><br />On a somewhat related note, I am making a concerted effort not to refer to myself as autistic, but as having Asperger's Syndrome. AS has some things in common with autism, and is part of the same "umbrella" of illnesses, in the same way that schizophrenia, schizotypal, and schizophreniform disorders fall under the same umbrella. However, just as residual schizotypal disorder is vastly different from full-blown schizophrenia, AS is different from the kind of autism that Conor has. This is my tiny attempt at raising awareness. <br /><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05967682108455601928noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-26663277590951975052013-08-05T10:28:26.299-03:002013-08-05T10:28:26.299-03:00Well done Amy Mackin!Well done Amy Mackin!Mommie that Gets Ithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04507449626509854193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-43119402941308285132013-07-30T23:00:10.568-03:002013-07-30T23:00:10.568-03:00Nice to hear from someone who is honest and open....Nice to hear from someone who is honest and open. No hidden motives only an acknowledgment of the range of disability found in individuals with autism.Lorrinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-79713955715770969502013-07-29T19:38:12.331-03:002013-07-29T19:38:12.331-03:00Your article is very much appreciated Ms Mackin. Your article is very much appreciated Ms Mackin. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05838571980003579163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-70030275200542654112013-07-29T15:26:08.511-03:002013-07-29T15:26:08.511-03:00I am humbled and grateful that you feel I adequate...I am humbled and grateful that you feel I adequately spoke to this issue in my article for The Post. I am in awe of the difficult decisions families like yours must constantly make, and I believe it's important that the media cover all sides of the story. I wish you and your family the very best.Amy Mackinhttp://www.amymackin.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33052404.post-79256385948139558152013-07-29T06:09:22.911-03:002013-07-29T06:09:22.911-03:00People like happy endings. An autism story that st...People like happy endings. An autism story that starts with a lost child and ends with a successful adult will get more donations then a story of an adult that smashes their head against a wall.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com