Autism Awareness Day!! Light it Up Blue!!

04/02/2015 09:43 AMPosted by Kurazion

Today is national Autism Awareness Day and in honor of all those with Autism and a friend of mine whose grandson has Autism, I decided to create a 40 man raid group with players either wearing blue or mounted on a blue mount.. anything blue pretty much was wanted.. The response was fantastic!!! I can't thank those enough that showed your support and came along to be apart of the screenshot today. Just because someone has Autism doesn't mean that they should feel alone. Everyone deserves to feel that someone out there cares and today the WoW community did just that!!!! I have asked all those that came for the screenshot to comment that they came. Thanks again guys and gals and I really hope that every year I can create more groups and get even more support in the following years!

http://gyazo.com/934332a68ff5a1dc9cf1494057915157
http://gyazo.com/185d066a127ab33a94e7d5b67e29ffb9

04/02/2015 04:07 PMPosted by Silverblud

I can't speak for my wife but it was very hard for me in the first few years. My son was diagnosed back in the 2001-2002 timeframe. Of all people to suspect it was an intern teacher (a very nice person) in my son's kindergarten class not the family physician. I know Wifey went through a phase of blaming herself and wondering if she did something wrong while pregnant. That eventually eased.

Back then the info on the net wasn't what it is to day and the resources and support systems weren't adequate either. I think not knowing what to expect was the hardest part. Our biggest concern was what kind of quality of life he would have. Over time he grew up and became high functioning. Now he seems like a quirky young man (still with autism)! Very polite and we correct him when he isn't (even at 19 years old). As a parent you may be taking care of him/her for the rest of your life. This isn't a bad thing. Just encourage independence. Our son will never leave home!

Through the years my wife worked close with the teachers he had and asked for feedback about him during the day. This is/was so important. A good parent/teacher communication and trust is a must. They need to know what meds your child is on and what to look out for. If the teacher noticed a change in behavior we would often email the autism doc and changes would be made. Meds or dosages would be changed or stopped. If it takes a while (and it will) to get to see an autism doc just remember they are specialists and it's worth the wait.

It's important to be involved in the community and school. The district official in charge of special needs programs knew both Wifey and I by name and site. Many times we called when something didn't go the way it was supposed to in his IEP. Make sure you do this. Just like in WoW, positive feedback is good and can help make the school programs better. When we had parent/teacher meetings we always made sure to point out the positive and always thank the teachers.

Finally, Wifey ran for school board and won in order to continue to influence change in the district. As parents don't be afraid to go big at times!