There is a lot of great news out there regarding autism. Many families have tried biomedical and therapeutic interventions with terrific results. The website, autism.com has great information about treatments that have worked for many children on the spectrum. No one can predict whether any of these will help your child.
When I was in my early thirties I sought help from the medical community for my bulimia. I was depressed, could not stop the destructive cycle of binging and throwing up. There seemed little to live for. I phoned several rehabs and after speaking with several doctors and eating disorder specialists, I was told the longer a person had an eating disorder, the more intractable and harder to treat it became. When I mentioned I had been bulimic for going on two decades there was silence. I remember hanging up the phone and feeling utter despair. I felt a similar despair when Emma was diagnosed. But then, as I had when I was still bulimic, I became determined. That determination served me well during those difficult years. I never gave up and eventually found enough people who were able to help me, hold my hand and advise me. I learned I couldn’t recover on my own. I learned how to ask for help. I learned to lean on others. And I learned that in my darkest moments, if I remembered to reach out to someone else in need, to offer to help them, my own problems diminished. I have tried to live my life in this way ever since.
Sometimes when I read about other people’s successes with their children, while happy for them, I feel sad for Emma. I believe it’s natural to feel this. I will never give up on Emma. I will continue to do all I can to help her and while I do, I continue to work on my impatience while remembering to be grateful for each moment with her.
A little gratitude goes a long way.
For more on Emma’s journey through a childhood of autism, go to: www.Emma’s Hope Book .com
Emma's Hope Book 