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For Kathy Kresin and her six-year-old son, David, every day is filled with new experiences, and new challenges.
“It’s day to day, and you have to take every little baby step and appreciate it, and you do appreciate things more,” said Kresin.
David is diagnosed with Autism. “For David, the biggest struggle has been verbal communication, and that’s the red flag that we first noticed when he was young,” she said. “At 18-months he didn’t have any language at all.”
Pediatrician Dr. David Kaufman with Children’s Physicians, says because there is no known cause, plenty of theories exist for why a child is autistic.
One strong belief by some, vaccines can lead to the disorder.
“From our standpoint again, there is no controversy nor debate, vaccines do not cause autism and they did not cause autism previously,” said Dr. Kaufman, whose opinions are consistent with the Center for Disease Control.
He says another rumor, with no medical proof, is that having children too close together can spur the disorder. “We think more than likely there’s a stronger genetic disorder then there would be to a birth order or closeness of births in a family.”
What is important, screening early in children, like David, who may exhibit symptoms.
Doctors say as soon as soon as a child is diagnosed with Autism, therapy should begin. for David, that meant occupational, physical, and speech therapy, and now he even uses an i-Pad to communicate with his kindergarten class.
He uses pictures to form sentences on a $189 iPad app. It’s called Proloquo2go, and is much more budget-friendly than the $8,000 device used in the past.
There is no cure for Autism, but some patients do improve over time. Kresin says appreciation for any break throughs is key. “For the most part, if you look for it, you can find a lot of joy and a lot of happiness in our day.” her days with David are filled with hope.
Kresin has a blog where she shares her experiences, in hope of being a resource for other families dealing with Autism. to read her entries, click here.
There are also other support groups, like the Autism Society of Nebraska. there is an Omaha chapter that holds fun events monthly.
Another organization is Parent Training and Information-Nebraska. they help families of children with all different disabilities, including autism.
Sharon Orduna works for the organization and also has a daughter with the disorder. “It’s just a lot of unknowns, but there’s so much hope now, and so much more that we have today that we didn’t have 10 or 12 years ago, so many more resources, these kids can succeed, they can live independent lives,” said Orduna. “They can go on to college, we are seeing it, and that’s one of the things here at PTI that we are committed to doing, is supporting families so they can see that their child succeeds.”
Orduna says getting support is key. “One of the things that we can do here at PTI, is direct families to some support groups out there,” she said. “I just think it is just paramount that families link arms with other families who actually are walking in their shoes, I think it’s just so important.”
The PTI-Nebraska Director, Glenda Davis said finding good information can be difficult for parents, and knowing where to turn will help. “When you’re faced with a child who has autism, or any disability, it’s just a whole different world out there, so what we do, is try to provide the families with the knowledge they need to have, the resources they need to do the possible best for their children.”
There is also other opportunities for families with special needs children, like a “sensory friendly” movie at AMC Oakview 24 Theaters. they have a movie on one Saturday a month, where the lights are left dimly on, the sound is lower, and children are allowed to move around freely. the cost is regular price. This month, the movie is “Gnomeo and Juliet” and will air February 12th at 10 a.m.
There is also a push for Autism awareness by another organization, Autism Speak. the group is aiming to get individuals and businesses involved in an annual project called “Light it up Blue” where landmarks are lit with a blue light for awareness. the event takes place on April 1 and 2. for more information click here.