Our Sept. 8 cover story on autism prompted heartfelt responses from parents and professionals who faulted us for whitewashing the disorder. “My son can’t communicate or play,” wrote one.”He’ll be dependent forever.”
HOW OUR BRAINS WORK
Thanks for the stories of kids with autism (“Boys, Girls and Autism,” Sept. 8). You highlight this as a spectrum disorder and note that autistic people have unique abilities and the potential to be contributing members of society. This is true for those on the higher-functioning end of the autism spectrum, such as those you depicted, and for most of those who are more severely affected. Autism, increasing at an alarming rate of 10 to 17 percent a year, is one of the fastest-growing disabilities: about 50 new U.S. families will learn today that their child has some form of autism. Autism takes both an emotional and a financial toll on families. The annual estimated cost of treatment is $90 billion; it could increase to more than $300 billion a year over the next decade. The U.S. government acknowledges it as a health crisis of epidemic proportion, with no known causes or cures. Scientists agree that there is a genetic component to autism, but factors like infectious, neurologic, immunologic and environmental insults may also play important roles.
Robert L. Beck, President
Autism Society of America
Bethesda, Maryland
I was told my autistic son couldn’t learn math, that he wouldn’t ever have a “regular” job, and that I should let the state care for him. I’m glad I didn’t listen. Today he holds down a full-time job and is preparing for college courses in Web-page design. The public needs to hear more about what our kids can do, and less about how they can’t be like everyone else.
Chris Collier
Plymouth, New Hampshire
What a gut-wrenching, heart-warming cover! The loving concern of the sister and the apprehension of the autistic brother are agonizingly apparent. How lucky young Daniel Nurse is to have a sister like Hannah. Thanks to Mary Ellen Mark for a wonderful photograph.
Robert Ayers
North Hero, Vermont
InsertArt(2037906)What cold comfort to speculate that my 18-year-old son’s autism is simply “an extreme version of normal male intelligence.” This angry young man, with a normal IQ and the social skills of a toddler, faces a bleak future. Parents of autistic children don’t need theories; we need help. We need professionals to teach our kids social and independent-living skills. Our kids need mentors, supervised living arrangements, enlightened education and supported employment—without decade-long waiting lists and without causing family bankruptcy. Anyone who thinks the talents of some children with autism are “a gift” hasn’t had a son talk repeatedly about killing himself.
Leslie Braunstein
Reston, Virginia
Our 35-year-old son is of the first generation of developmentally disabled people being kept at home (not in a residential setting) and schooled in the local community. For 11 years he has been living, working and spending leisure time with the support of an agency that provides the resources that he needs to function. He has many strengths but poor communication and social skills. He is just one of many success stories for those born since the late ’60s, when education began to open doors for parents to assist children with autism. Being able to live a semi-independent life has relieved society and his family of a terrible burden and made him a proud, contributing member of society.
Ellen Alexander
Oceanside, New York
I have worked with people with autism for 10 years, and believe that the assertion that autism is just a specific type of intelligence could be a big setback for these people. Some families and professionals are beginning to make headway in having society look at some of the causes of autism, such as environmental factors, mercury in vaccinations and diet. It is not news that women and men process information differently.
Angela Newsome
Pikeville, North Carolina
Autistic kids have too many immune-system problems to write off their condition as simply a different way of thinking and learning. Parents of autistic kids who have intestinal problems, learning disabilities, seizures, severe allergies and all the rest, are not going to buy this latest screwball theory nor will the doctors who treat them. The truth will emerge—but it is frustrating to wait. As these children become adults, their parents, whose lives have also been ruined, feel time ticking away. They are furious—as they should be—and bone-deep sad.
Rick Rollens
Granite Bay, California
If I didn’t have any experience with autism, I would have the impression after reading your article that it is merely an inconvenience to the child and his or her parents, and that maybe with a little special instruction, and a more empathetic society, children with autism would function just fine. I would not have known about the head banging, the chronic diarrhea, the total lack of verbal abilities, the seizures, the uncontrollable screaming, the sleepless nights, the inability to understand language, the hypersensitivity to sound, light and touch and the numerous other challenges that many children with autism face. In the first quarter of 2003, California saw the largest increase in new cases of autism in the 35-year history of its Developmental Disabilities Service Program. These new cases are full-syndrome autism, not Asperger’s or PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified).
Adam Miller
VP of Training and Development
Advocates for the Rights of the Challenged, Martin County
Stuart, Florida
Although your article does acknowledge that autism is a devastating disorder, I fear that the gist of your report may convey the wrong message to the novice or to families. There is much we do not yet know about autism. To give the impression that it may be “just an extreme version of normal male intelligence” and line up a comely display of healthy versus pathological drawings may be perilously misleading. Although interesting, Cam-bridge University psychologist Simon Baron-Cohen’s ideas are controversial, and the critical reader would do well to gain a comprehensive perspective on mainstream thought concerning autism from additional sources.
Dr. Amir Raz
Asst. Prof. of Clinical Neuroscience, Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons
New York, New York
© 2003 Newsweek, Inc.