Email a Friend
Print Article
Ami Klin: Reaching Children With Autism
We know that the earlier we are able to detect autism and intervene, the more likely we are to optimize the child’s outcome. So early detection is critical.
We hope to capitalize on this finding in order to test babies from the time they are born. Our hope is to detect vulnerabilities for autism as early as possible, so as to intervene with the hope to capitalize on the babies’ brain malleability.
I have 20 years serving children with autism and their families, and their well-being is all that matters.
There is nothing in our research that in any way conveys a sense that children [with autism] are any less human, any less deserving of our love and respect, or any less of anything at all. It’s not an issue that children with autism have no relations with the world, or with parents, or with significant others. It is that the way they seem to learn about this world is rather different than the strategies used by their peers.
By better understanding how they do this, the better we will be able to reach them, and like in any personal relationship, the better they will be able to reach us.
It is critical for us not to focus exclusively or even largely on how the social mind and brain 'break down.' It is equally if not more important an interest how the children build the minds and brains.
They seem to be doing that in very special ways, conferring specialness to their perspective of the world. In so doing, they are adding diversity, uniqueness, and most importantly, a new way of seeing the world. And God knows that we need diversity so as to not become entrenched in old ways of thinking about things. Their different perspective might give us solutions that others, with the typical mind and brain, might never see.
Of course, I say all that without at any second minimizing or trying to wish away the grave challenges that parents and their children face every day contending with this condition and the difficulties that it brings to navigating successfully the challenges of everyday life.
Read the WebMD news story about Klin's study on autism and early detection.
10 Comments:
It's nice to see a professional who understands that autism is not a scourge but a differant way of being. People with autism are not "lepers" to be cured but intellects with much to offer the world. Regardless of how severely one is affected, there is profound substance to these people. If it were't for Autistics, we would be driving on square wheels and there wouldn't be personal computers.
This "article" is poorly written. I'm sad that the points made won't be taken seriously due to that, and it's seemingly "rose colored glasses" theme that lacks real practicality at this point.
anybody who writes glowing things about how wonderful autism is and how it's just another "diverse perspective" is:
a) an idiot
b) obviously does not know anybody with autistic kids.
It is an absolutely brutal condition both on the children and families requiring super human efforts.
I like to hear from anyone/ everyone who is working for understanding of the Spectrum, but I share the concerns that this note little more than marginal encouragement, rather than the passionate committment that professionals must convey to drive others to action. Of course, there is an infinite amount that people on the Spectrum have to share, but we need and deserve more than this blurb to promote the therapy, research and development to reach that genius. I hope that this was just a quick note to meet a deadline and not the best that there is to offer.
The truth is - those who finance this and other researches like cancer, asthma and so on, do not want the CURE - they want a neverending treatment. Why? "Money, money, money. Must be funny. In the rich man's world..." (ABBA) That's why the world waste $billions on the B.S. science and B.S. scientists, while true scientists remain unknown because their research allow people to save money and this is against interests of the "chosen" corporations and the government of the corp-choice. __________________________
By the way - autism, cancer and many other maladies can be cured NOW without drugs... There are such non-drug, non-violent, no side effects technologies... For example, up to 1 year-old babies can be completely cured from cerebral palsy in 4 session of such therapy, no matter how bad are signs of their disease. __________________________
Why you do not know about? Because the FDA by/of/for the "chosen" corporations jails any healthcare professional who dare to cure these diseases. Why? Because the cure without drugs, according to the FDA (only), is quackery, but neverending treatment is not... __________________________
Maybe it's time to get rid off the "chosen" ones and create a society of/by/for the people?
Dr. Klin is astonishingky warm, brilliant and generous with his time and expertise. He and his colleagues at Yale have worked with our son for 8 years. My child has rather profound autism and is a far more well-developed and capable child than he would have been without Drs. Klin, Volkmar and their many dedicated and caring researchers and staff. At Yale the children are treated with respect and dignity, as are parents. The Yale staff helped us see through the initial diagnostic shock and find the wonderful child inside. Is it easy? No, not for a single day. Does Dr. Klin know that? He certainly does. True researchers are far from "in it for the money," which is more the domain of quacks and those with dubious cures. If you want an instant fix and someone to blame for autism, you might skip Yale; it is the real world for honest and dedicated doctors and clinicians, and parents who seek help and the truth.
To B's mom:
True cure is the one, which targets the reason of the disease.
When doctors treat autism (also cancer, schizophrenia, etc.) without any clue of what caused the disease and named it as the only appropriate treatment - these guys are not doctors - they are quacks.
Let's take a less dramatic examples - high blood pressure:
True doctor must cure the disease by targeting its reason, for example, problems with the heart, vessels, kidneys, digestive system (e.g. the liver), mental state and so on and the disease will be cured without any anti-high blood pressure pills.
If the main treatment is anti-high blood pressure pills - the disease can become only stronger.
Why? Because the body uses the high blood pressure state to resolve problems the doctors do not recognize.
Thus, these doctors do not let the body to cure itself and due to this the body will try to increase blood pressure in the war against the pills. It mean that the patient will never be cured. It's good for pharmaceuticals and very bad for people.
Unfortunately, pharmaceuticals control doctors, the FDA, AMA, etc. (president of the US?). Thus, the only choice and salvation, which people can have is using their own brains and never trust wolves in the holy sheep's skin - the FDA, AMA, etc.
Conclusion:
B's mom or one of them or a victim of brainwashing (mind control programs).
By the way, Yale University also could be named as a fortress of the masters (Freemasons) in New Haven, Connecticut, who are making money for the expense of people's health, wealth, etc. (Google it)
To the last poster - does this sound familiar? (Hint - look in the mirror.)
"Paranoia is a mental disorder that can make people falsely believe that others are lying, cheating, using them, or trying to harm them, or it can give them an overly large sense of self-importance. People with paranoia can have either or both of these traits.
Paranoia may occur with several other mental disorders (as in paranoid schizophrenia) or Alzheimer's disease. It rarely occurs as a mental illness on its own."
Your rantings have no basis in fact. B's mom isn't brainwashed. She's just living in the real world, doing the best for her child, working with researchers and clinicians who care deeply about children like B and their families.
B's mom is right. Klin is the real deal. We can safely discount the charlatans who talk about brainwashing, or about instant cures for autism, cerebral palsy, and the like. They'll take your money and do their "treatments", and they'll take credit for whatever improvements happen (after all, children do sometimes improve, without any treatment), but they are basically in it to scoop up the money of the gullible, and we should all steer clear of them. Hooray for Klin, and may there be more like him.
Dr. Klin does not offer much info in this article, however Im just glad he didn't bother to the same old things we read in every other article. As a mom of a child with autism, we do need more doctors who are sensitive to the nature of autism but we also need more doctors who are knowledgeable about ways to help and who are aware of local services to help our children. And if Dr. klin is helping B and his mom then hats of to Dr. KIln. I hope he shares his practices and resources with more doctors around the world!
Post a Comment