Pope Urges 'Network of Support and Services' for People with Autism

Catholics must help to break down the isolation and stigma that surrounds people with autism spectrum disorder, Pope Francis said.

The Pope made the comments in an address to hundreds of parents and children affected by autism in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican on Saturday.

He appealed for the creation of “a network of support and services” to assist people on the autism spectrum.

Study Finds ASD-Air Pollution Link

Preliminary research out of the University of Pittsburgh found that children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) were 1.4 to two times more likely to have been exposed to higher levels of air pollution during pregnancy and the first two years of life than children without ASD. The results of the study were presented at the American Association for Aerosol Research annual meeting in Orlando, Fla. Wednesday.

CDC: 1-in-5 Kids Have Mental Disorder

Millions of American children suffer from depression, anxiety, autism spectrum disorders and an array of other mental health issues, and the prevalence of such conditions is rising, a new study shows.
Roughly one in five children experience a mental disorder in a given year, according to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The costs for health care, special education, juvenile justice and other services for people under age 24 with mental disorders total nearly $250 billion each year, the report shows.

My Son Had Autism; Then He Didn't

From Huffington Post Parents' Shawn Bean, Executive Editor, Parenting Early Years.

I'm trying to hold him, but he's squirming. The airport lounge is packed with people, and I can feel all eyes on me: the dad who cannot appease his toddler. Brandy sees me struggling, and comes up with a quick fix. She flips over the stroller. She places Jackson next to it. He begins to spin one of the wheels with his hand. He keeps spinning it. Over and over and over. He's completely absorbed. I look at Brandy quizzically. She shrugs.
Jackson was 3 years old at the time, and by all accounts -- from mother's intuition to the experts' definition -- he was on the spectrum. The behavioral psychologists saw what we saw, but were hesistant to make an official diagnosis. His brain is still developing. So much can change in six months. So time passed. His clothes went from 4T to 5T. Birthday candles were lit, blown out, and saved in the kitchen drawer. By age 6, the appointments with the behavioral psychologists were over. The autism books came off my wife's nightstand. Our tears were redirected to other things like kindergarten graduations.

Autism and the Hypothetical Child

From Huffingtonn Post's Todd Drezner.

Given how many autistic people there are in the world, it's odd how much of the conversation about autism revolves around children who don't exist. The most common such child is the one who is "indistinguishable from his peers." This is the child who will supposedly emerge after successful therapies or treatments for autism leave the child essentially "normal."
This hypothetical normal child is closely related to another, younger one--the 1- or 2-year-old who was typically developing before the signs of autism became apparent. These two types of hypothetical children are linked by the assumption that their autism obscures their "real" selves. The hope for parents is that if the autism can somehow be removed, the real child will re-emerge.

Aging Out: 'Like Falling Off a Cliff'

Sad but powerful story focusing on the lack of adult services. It's not just Michigan. All states need to address this and the numbers demonstrate the need.

TROY, Mich. -- Nick Gammicchia knows exactly what he's going to do in the future.

Nick Gammicchia uses a driver
simulator at a driving school.

"I'm going to Hollywood to help out movie producers, storyboard artists," Gammicchia said.
He already has drawn several storyboards and even sent a storyboard and screenplay to director Steven Spielberg.
"He's got big dreams," his mother, Carolyn Gammicchia, said with a smile.

Farm Provides a 'Life's Work' for Adults

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. -- When Wendy Kaplan gathered her 26-year-old daughter Rachel's circle of support to discuss options for living independently, she thought they would talk about moving to an apartment. But Rachel, who has autism and communicates through typing, had a different idea. She wanted to live on a farm.
Thus began SustainAbility, a one-acre farm is in the height of its inaugural season at the Planting Fields Arboretum State Historic Park in Oyster Bay, Long Island.