Time for a Cohesive Message

July 30, 2008 Recently, national radio talk show host Michael Savage caused an uproar when he called autism a ‘racket,’ the ‘illness du jour’ and a ‘fraud.’ Parents and professionals reacted by suggesting that he be ignored and that he be fired. I was not surprised by the conflicting reactions. This is, after all, the…

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Autism, Church and the Social Contract

May 25, 2008 I’ve been following, with much dismay, the media reports and Internet blogging about the parents from Bertha, Minnesota, who were repeatedly asked, then finally ordered, by the court, not to bring their son with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) to St. Joseph’s Church. According to documents filed by the church in support of…

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On a Three-Legged Walk

As seen in the St. Paul Pioneer Press April 28, 2008 I was walking with an old friend recently when the conversation turned to the challenges we both faced in our households. I had angst about what the future holds for my teen-age son with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). She was worried about the future…

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An Epidemic, a Vacuum and an Opportunity

March 26, 2008 The federal compensation court settlement of Hannah Poling’s autism/vaccine claim has shined a spotlight on an emotionally charged controversy within the autism world. Since our son’s autism diagnosis, I’ve sat on the sidelines of this rabid dispute, deliberately focusing on the fix, not the culprit. In the wake of the Poling settlement,…

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Such Progress, So Quickly, Makes a Parent Wonder

November 20, 2007 Last spring, I had a troubling conversation with my adolescent son who is on the autism spectrum. He had taken a mainstream class for the first time in years, having been in mostly small special education classes since third grade. I asked him which classroom felt right for him. “The kids in…

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Time to Visit the Void

October 22, 2007 All around me, parents fight the October blues that set in after their high school grad officially becomes a college freshman, leaving an empty spot in their hearts and their homes. Phone calls, e-mails, and visits help families make the transition so by the time the autumn leaves have stopped swirling and…

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The Latest Leap of Faith

September 24, 2007 I remember the conversation with my brother as if it was yesterday. We were grousing about the fact that obstetricians deliver babies without a parenting manual. As new parents, we felt ill-equipped for this momentous journey with our spouses. Since then, I’ve made thousands of decisions, ridiculously unimportant and overwhelmingly significant ones,…

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Words Matter

July 30, 2007 In the school of hard knocks, I’ve learned that words that describe people can have lasting and unintended consequences. In years past, I happily embraced several designations: wife, stepmother, and lawyer. All was well until late 1993, when I was pummeled with a most unwelcome label: “refrigerator mother.” This new term attributed…

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Autism and the Promise of Less Isolation

July 7, 2012 I can’t pinpoint the person who first spoke the word “autism.” I do recall with great certainty that I could not repeat the word for months after I first heard it. I didn’t really know what it meant; I just knew that it was not good. I now know that it is…

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