The prevalence of fastest growing disability in the United States increased 30% in the last seven years. Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), complex neurological disorder which can cause mild or severe disability, occurs at a rate of one in every 68 live births. More than 1.5 million people in the United States have an ASD diagnosis and live with the challenges of seeing and interacting with the world in a different way than neuro-typical people around them. The cause of autism is not known, nor is there a cure. Because there are more and more people being diagnosed with ASD, some of whom look no different from you and me on the outside, general awareness needs to increase.
Autism Spectrum Disorders affect boys four times more often than girls, and I have a kind formerly called Asperger’s Syndrome. I face many challenges that neuro-typical people cannot relate to. Some people on the spectrum have symptoms of classic autism and some, like me, have above average intelligence, but delays in neurological, social, emotional, and physical development. Being around other people outside of my home is hard for me because my brain interprets messages from my senses either too much or too little. This makes it hard for me to focus on things around me because I am distracted, sometimes painfully. I also do not understand social language and behavior and occasionally don’t have the same level of physical skills as my peers. My small muscle development is very poor, so handwriting is impossibly difficult, even though I have worked hard on it in occupational therapy. These issues cause me a great deal of stress in relationships, at school, and at home.
People with autism can become higher functioning with early treatment, support, and financial means. Symptoms of ASD usually appear in children before the age of three. The sooner they get treatment, such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language therapy, and Applied Behavioral Therapy (ABA) the...