Come Learn Along With Me: Is There a Cure for Autism?

Gina Marie Incandela — autistic savant?

Posted By Phyllis on June 17, 2009

A friend sent me a clip of autistic 7-year-old Gina Marie Incadendela singing the national anthem for NBA games.  It’s amazing for any 7-year-old–her voice sounds like that of someone much older, trained, so on.

So, what is her story? Is she parroting? Somehow it hardly seems likely. If she were deep in autism, the sensory input of a huge crowd would overwhelm her. Yet she seems unfazed.  She was once mute, and now isn’t. Not only does she sing, but she talks and has friends, according to her Web site.

Here’s what her Web site says about her recovery: “Gina received various therapies including, occupation, speech and language and behavioral.    She is now in a ‘regular’ class at a private school.  She still receives therapy at school and at home but, continues to thrive and advance.”

I am guessing that her autism has given her prodigious musical abilities. This is the case for my autistic brother, who can play a number of instruments and has perfect pitch. He can hear a song on a CD once and then sit down and play it on the piano.  He has been called a savant. People in the category of having prodigious talents despite disabilities are called savants.

My brother plays bass guitar in a band, the Hi Hopes, including several savants besides himself. It’s in Anaheim, California, near Disneyland. Actually, my brother has been having some depression issues and isn’t performing with the band. But he is rehearsing with them once a week.  He lives for this.

My son “Mike” also has perfect pitch.  He heard Gina Marie’s sound clip and said she was on pitch. I am guessing she may also have perfect pitch, because she was singing without accompaniment.

Go, Gina Marie!!

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Still some anxiety

Posted By Phyllis on June 11, 2009

The biomedical interventions are helping a lot. The new Mike is very easy to get along with, but still doesn’t necessarily understand what someone else is thinking. Also, he still seems to have a pretty high level of anxiety, which is a hallmark of Asperger’s as I have experienced it with my kids. For Mike, this comes out when a thunderstorm is headed our way, as it was last night.  He was fretting and fretting about tornadoes, and it was time to go to bed.  So we prayed about the fear and got out a white noise machine for him.  Then he went to bed.  He says he slept fine. The storm did arrive in the night. I guess he didn’t hear it.

He’s been on medication for anxiety, clonazepam. I am thinking it isn’t working. I’m going to try gradually taking him off it.  It’s the last prescription medication he is on.

Category: Living with autism | 3 Comments »
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NAET and Autism

Posted By Phyllis on May 22, 2009

Shannon has had three NAET treatments so far. She said the last one made her feel energized. She looked really perky. Unfortunately it was pretty close to bedtime!

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Trying N.A.E.T. for Shannon

Posted By Phyllis on May 16, 2009

Hey, I’m up for trying new stuff, don’t know about you. My criterion for new treatments of my children is this:  can it hurt them? If the answer is no, and the price is right, I’ll consider it.

So a friend of mine is a practitioner of N.A.E.T. She says this Chinese medicine theory treatment ( including acupressure) helps people with autism as well as those with a host of other immune-system-related issues, especially allergies. (Did you know that allergies, athsma, and autism are all epidemics right now, and they may be connected?)  My friend says people who try N.A.E.T. never get worse. Sometimes they get a lot better, sometimes a little bit.  She’s been a practitioner for at least 10 years and has lots of experience. In a previous career she was an RN.

My daughter “Shannon” is game to try it. She’s 21 years old, has Asperger’s, sensory sensitivities, difficulty knowing what someone else is thinking.

Shannon had two sessions so far.  Right after the next one, she will have to totally avoid a couple of possible allergens for 25 hours. One of them is feathers, and we have two pet birds, so Shannon will have to avoid the part of the house where the birds are.

We’ll keep you posted.

Category: Megson, Mike's progress | No Comments »
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Check out this web site

Posted By Phyllis on May 9, 2009

Generation Rescue has put up a Web site nicely summarizing the vaccine debate to date, and where the holes in the arguments are.  This is at this link:

http://fourteenstudies.org/index.html

Generation Rescue agrees with me that what is really needed is a large study comparing unvaccinated and vaccinated children.

“…Every study only looks at children who have received vaccines. This is like comparing smokers who smoke one pack a day to those who smoke two packs a day, seeing no difference in cancer rates, and saying cigarettes don’t cause cancer,” says the site writer.

The study goes through the list of studies that have supported the vaccine makers and deconstructs them.  Take a look!

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A Vaccine Data Study

Posted By Phyllis on May 5, 2009

The large-scale study of autism incidence in vaccinated vs unvaccinated populations that I have been hoping for hasn’t materialized, but an attempt in that direction has.

Generation Rescue, the advocacy group now headed by actors Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy, has just published a paper comparing the number of vaccination shots required for each child under 5 with the mortality rate for that age group in various Westernized countries.

Since vaccines are supposed to protect from terrible diseases, you might think the more shots, the lower the mortality rate. Not so.

Turns out that the U.S., with 36 required shots, has by far the highest number of shots required for any country. It also has the highest infant mortality rate, 7.8 per 1,000.

Scanning the data, I can see that there’s no linear relationship, though.  If this were the case, the more shots required, the higher the mortality rate would be.  Canada, for example, requires 28 shots, the next highest number to the US, but has a mortality rate of 5.9 per 1,000 for children under 5, in the middle of the range for all Westernized countries.

The study also makes it clear that the US autism rate, at 1 in 150, is many times higher than that of other Westernized countries.

This paper raises plenty of questions. I hope there is more similar work done soon.

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Autism Symptoms & Music - 5 Ways Music Can Make a Difference With Autism

Posted By Phyllis on April 28, 2009

deborah-leeby Deborah Lee (who used to be Mike and Shannon’s piano teacher–PW)

Most people understand that music is very enjoyable. There are aspects of music that bring a peace of mind and spirit. There are also aspects that are very structured and scientific.

All of these elements can provide the autistic person with some great tools and experiences to help them reach milestones and connect more with those around them. Here are some ways music can help…

Nonverbal Communication: Many Autistic people have limited or no verbal skills. Music provides them a way to express themselves without words. Sometimes this is just getting feelings out. Music has also been shown to increase verbal ability in those with autism, particularly through singing.

Motor Skills: Providing musical opportunities to those with autism is a great way to improve motor skills. Holding an instrument, clapping hands, and moving to the music all increase dexterity and muscle coordination.

Motivation: Music is a great motivator. The love of the music and desire to do more leads those with autism to spend more time with the music and in turn more time developing the skills the music provides.

Structure & Repetition: Music is not random, it is very structured and includes elements that are more constant like the fundamental timing or tempo of the piece and also provides repetition such as the rhythm or the lyrics. These things are very important to a person with autism who finds repetition and structure to be a place of calm.

Spontaneity and Flexibility: Even though music is structured there is still much room to be playful and to change things as you go. This helps the autistic individual to build confidence in their ability to go with the flow and helps them better adapt to the lack of structure in the world around them.

As you can see there’s much more music can do for an autistic person than just a chance at recreation. When used in certain ways music can give a person with autism a better quality of life.

Find Simple Ways Music Can Improve your Day to Day Life through the free four part mini course available at http://www.ourmusicalhome.com While you’re there you can read more about how music is important for all of life and ways to reach your own personal goals.

More information about autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, and PDD-NOS can be found at http://www.myautisminfo.com

We would love to hear your thoughts, ideas, and experiences. Comment areas are available at both sites.

From Deborah Lee — who wants you to have a more musical home and a more musical life.

Category: Living with autism | 1 Comment »
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Link Found Between Autism and Vinyl Flooring

Posted By Phyllis on April 25, 2009

Swedish and U.S. researchers  accidentally found a link between autism and vinyl flooring in the child’s room.

The March 31 issue of Scientific American described the research published recently in the journal Neurotoxicology. The research intended to examine a variety of factors related to indoor air pollution. The Swedish families in the study were asked about the children in the household, and also whether they were autistic. There were 4,779 children between the ages of 6 and 8 in the study.  Seventy-two were autistic.

The researchers, according to Scientific American, found that children living in bedrooms with vinyl flooring were twice as likely, five years later, to have autism than those who lived in bedrooms with wood or linoleum flooring. Vinyl, or PVC, emits phthalates, a toxic chemical. In animal testing, phthalates have been found to interfere with male hormones and sexual development.  In Sweden, vinyl flooring in bedrooms is commonplace.

The researchers also found that children whose mothers smoked were twice as likely to have autism when checked five years later.  Two other factors, interior condensation on windows (indicating poor ventilation) and family economic problems, also showed a positive correlation to autism.

The researchers suggested further study into the possible connection between vinyl flooring and autism.

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Jim Carrey on Huffington Post: Vaccine Research Needed

Posted By Phyllis on April 22, 2009

Actor Jim Carrey wrote a very well-reasoned argument on the subject of research on vaccine safety in today’s Huffington Post.

Pointing out that our children take twice as many shots as children in the rest of the world, he concludes,  “we need more independent vaccine research not done by the drug companies selling the vaccines or by organizations under their influence. Studies that cannot be internally suppressed. Answers parents can trust.”

I agree. This vaccine safety question has been hanging around too long. It’s time to look into it, big time.

Category: Mike's progress | 1 Comment »
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NPR on a research database of autistics

Posted By Phyllis on April 8, 2009

National Public Radio featured a story today about a group that invites families with autistic kids and adults to put their info into a database which is used by researchers needing subjects for study.

The Interactive Autism Network was set up two years ago by  Kennedy Krieger Institute, a research center in Baltimore, with funding from Autism Speaks, a nonprofit advocacy group.

Our family has been in a number of genetic studies conducted at Washington University by Dr. John Constantino and others.  The pace has slowed down in recent years though. This NPR report suggests that more funding will be coming for autism studies through the federal  stimulus package.

As I’ve said before, I am hoping to see a shift in study focus from genetics to environmental causes.  An epidemic can’t have solely genetic causes.

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