My autistic son.

[Redsonga]

Red, you have an outstanding outlook on life! I am like you when I see people not appreciating the gifts they have. Primarily parents that have kids that do not have any medical or learning disabilities. (My daughter had medical problems when she was born). These parents have perfectly normal kids and yet they do not spend the time to raise them (in my eyes) correctly. Too often people take what they have for granted.

Well, I have had a lifetime to come up with some of my pov .
I think that it is one of those things you have to feel first hand. Some people online have been like 'OMG, how can you talk about it all the time? I have friends with disables and they never draw attention to themselves ! '
*lol* Just so silly...
I don't understand not taking a disability as just a part of yourself, like your eye or hair color.
Of course until I got online I did not know that there were parents that pushed their children with CP so hard to be 'normal' that they actually made them ashamed to talk about having any limits, even if they do...

 

[RedPiggy]

That's like my friend. He loathes that society wants him to be "normal". He lives in a group home and can only leave when he proves he can be independent ... but group homes aren't set up that way. You can't live a normal life bound to one place, with no "normal" people around you, tied to living there because transportation is spotty, so you can't get a job ... etc. It's like they offer him a carrot on a very long stick and then blame him for not catching it.

 

[Redsonga]

That's like my friend. He loathes that society wants him to be "normal". He lives in a group home and can only leave when he proves he can be independent ... but group homes aren't set up that way. You can't live a normal life bound to one place, with no "normal" people around you, tied to living there because transportation is spotty, so you can't get a job ... etc. It's like they offer him a carrot on a very long stick and then blame him for not catching it.

That's a silly way of setting things up . I mean, our normal may not ever be a 'normal' person's normal but we should not be treated like we are 2nd class because of having limits. It's like saying 'fix yourself!' when we are not even broken...
Like, I can't lift heavy things but that doesn't mean I can't lift anything, I've learned to use smaller pots. Does that mean I can't cook as well? I don't think so. Working with your limits is to me even more important than fighting so hard against them in a 'normal' world that the only way you are left alone to have your own is to act like someone elses idea of 'normal'...

I've often thought about being some sort of speaker on disability..I'm shy, but I hardly ever see many people talking about it...and I think it needs to be.

 

[RedPiggy]

exactly

 

[Scott S]

Thank-you to both of you for helping me to undertand my son better! It is difficult to know what he really wants and you have helped me understand him a little bit more. For instance, he always talks about the new movies that are coming out. He even writes them on his calendar. But that does not mean he wants to see them. If we try to take him he will always tell us he does not want to go. However of the last 2 we took him to he loved High School musical 3 and hated 17 again. It is tought to know what he really wants.

He has autism to a degree that he does not know that he has it. He does not think of himself as different, even though he has an aide in his classes. We have tried to tell him about autism and have said several times to him that he has it, but it does not sink in.

Anyway I am rambling. Redsonga, have you ever thought about giving a talk at a local elementtary school. I know they are usually pretty big on ability awareness. It might be a place for you to start and share your fantastic outlook and understanding.

 

[Scott S]

OK there is a bit of a problem. We are on the first disc of season 2. The last episode Kermit is sick and has Fozzie do the show. Now my son is worried about Kermit and is wondering if he is OK. We have to wait for the next disc to come from Netflix until I can prove that Kermit is OK.

Yesterday he was saying that I could drive Kermit to the hospital if he needed it. I have tried to convince him that Kermit is OK, but I know it will be a big relief to him when he sees the next show.

 

[Nick22]

lol. tell us what he says when he finds out!

 

[CensoredAlso]

Hearlde, Thanks for the info, pretty cool. Great the kid likes the muppets also.

Glad you enjoyed it! It's a pretty amazing story, especially since Richard Hunt was known for having a good repore with kids.

OK there is a bit of a problem. We are on the first disc of season 2. The last episode Kermit is sick and has Fozzie do the show. Now my son is worried about Kermit and is wondering if he is OK. We have to wait for the next disc to come from Netflix until I can prove that Kermit is OK.

Hope the next Netflix comes soon! (They're pretty reliable lol).

 

[Redsonga]

Thank-you to both of you for helping me to undertand my son better! It is difficult to know what he really wants and you have helped me understand him a little bit more. For instance, he always talks about the new movies that are coming out. He even writes them on his calendar. But that does not mean he wants to see them. If we try to take him he will always tell us he does not want to go. However of the last 2 we took him to he loved High School musical 3 and hated 17 again. It is tought to know what he really wants.

He has autism to a degree that he does not know that he has it. He does not think of himself as different, even though he has an aide in his classes. We have tried to tell him about autism and have said several times to him that he has it, but it does not sink in.

Anyway I am rambling. Redsonga, have you ever thought about giving a talk at a local elementtary school. I know they are usually pretty big on ability awareness. It might be a place for you to start and share your fantastic outlook and understanding.

It sounds like he just likes collecting information on movies and when they are shown. Collecting info might give him a feeling of control over the world around him and a feeling of being useful. I do that sometimes with different things when the world gets me down . I would not worry, just because he comments on it does not mean he wants to see everything.

*hee* I'm afaid I would be too shy to speak . Typing is different, it's easy for me (I hunt and peck 15 wam :3)

 

[zns]

Z, I have learned so much about myself from Daniel. I am easily borderline Asbergers. I am not very social, I HATE eye contact for example. In my younger days when I had too much I would say that I had "sensory overload". Now I see that Daniel has that all the time and when he has too much he shuts down and goes into a shell. I am glad that you know about your condition (I grew up not knowing) and you also have a great outlook.

Well I got to tell you, the one message that I have gotten from Jim Henson is that you should enjoy life no matter what the cost. Whenever I am out in public, I try to keep any signs of my dissability from getting out in front of people that I am with. Whenever I do something that seems out of place, I become a little embarressed and it takes me a minute or two to try and move on.

Now that I am older, I have become more fully aware about my condition and what I can do to help prevent certain things from happening. I rely heavily on my own self-control and optimistic outlook on life, plus I try and see things through both points of view.

Heck, I've already finished my junior year of college with a major/minor in Communication/Theater. I never even pictured myself being able to get this far ahead in school, but I've outsmarted myself. I am currently thinking about trying to land a job as a performer with the Muppets, using my own demo tapes that I have put on youtube. I've even become good friends with Marty Robinson (Telly, Snuffleupagus, etc.), whom I met two years ago. I just want to have a career that I know I can enjoy doing, an not just beacuse it's something I grew up with. I've made a pact to myself since then that I am going to push myself to be the person that I hope to be. I'm more social now than I was before, plus I try to be more open-minded to new things.

All I can say for you is that your son is going to be all right. It is times like this that he needs the love and support that any child needs now more than ever. Words cannot express how wonderful my parents were to me, and I'm sure that your son will feel the same way about you.