What Does Autism Look Like?

What Does Autism Look Like?

One of the comments that parents of children with autism will sometimes hear is, “he/she doesn’t look autistic.” Personally, this bugs me and I’ll tell you why. At first glance, yes, maybe children with autism don’t look autistic. Maybe, for all intents and purposes, they look like “normal” children. And guess what? They are children. They are human beings… they eat, breathe, poop, sleep (mostly), get angry, get sad, laugh, cry.. you get the picture. They just also happen to have autism. So what does autism look like? What does Autism look like anyway? In all truth, if you want to know what an autistic child looks like, look at your own child or grandchild. Look at the children who live next door to you…

What is a developmental disability?

Welcome to another day of Autism A to Z. Today I want to talk about developmental disabilities because that’s what autism is. So what is a developmental disability? We’ll talk about the general definition as well as talk about a few developmental disabilities in addition to autism. When it comes to autism specifically, usually the terminology is lifelong developmental disability. That is also the case with other developmental disabilities. As defined by NIMH, a developmental disability is: Developmental disabilities are severe, long-term problems. They may be physical, such as blindness. They may affect mental ability, such as learning disorders. Or the problem can be both physical and mental, such as Down syndrome. The problems are usually life-long, and can affect everyday living. Often there is…

What is Autism?

What is Autism?

As you know, autism is very much a part of our lives. It’s been an immediate part of my life since Sweet B’s diagnosis. But prior to her diagnosis, I was mostly unaware as to what autism really is. If you had asked me what the early signs of autism were? I didn’t have a clue. Now it’s different but back then? I was clueless. I had a vague idea.. mostly from watching Rain Man but beyond that? I was clueless. After her diagnosis, I gave myself a crash course and started to learn as much as I could. And of course with the internet, now it’s easier to answer the question: What is Autism? And it’s also easier to find out what it is…