Excuse me while I yawn

by Beth Finke

Last week I heard a story on MSNBC saying that children with autism tend not to yawn in response to seeing others yawn. The story referred to a study published in the September/October issue of the journal Child Development that described yawning as a sort of “emotional contagion.” Molly Helt, a doctoral candidate at the University of Connecticut, got the idea to study yawning when she was on a flight with her son, who has autism.

In an attempt to help relieve painful pressure in her son’s ears, she tried to get him to yawn by yawning right in front of him.

About 45 percent of us yawn when we see someone else yawn, but Helt’s yawns had no such effect on her little one.

In Helt’s study, researchers watched children while they listened to a story read aloud. The storyteller yawned four times during the reading, and 43% of the typically developing children in the study yawned. None of the children with an autistic disorder yawned contagiously, and about 23 percent of children with pervasive developmental disorder yawned. From the MSNBC story:

“Yawning when you see someone else yawn requires empathy, on a certain level,” Helt said.

She found that most children with autism are unlikely to copy this behavior, and the finding may help scientists better understand important aspects of human communication and social behavior that children with autism don’t experience.

Those of you who follow this blog know I’m blind. I never see people yawn. I’m wondering now if I don’t yawn as much as other people do. I’ll tell you this, though … just writing about yawning is making me feel tired!

Century 21 doubles its commitment to children with autism

by Beth Finke

If you read my August blog post about CENTURY 21, you know that last month Century 21 launched a nationwide online photo-sharing campaign, and that Century 21 will make a $1 donation to Easter Seals for each entry submitted to its 21st Century Child: Picture the Future contest.

Well, the news from Century 21 just got even better. To boost contributions made to Easter Seals’ Act for Autism program, Century 21 Real Estate just announced it will match $1 for every $1 raised through the contest. This donation will be made in addition to the brand’s $1 match for every photo uploaded to the contest page.

The contest runs through September 30, so you need to sign up soon! To participate, visit the contest page and share a favorite photo of a child you love (age 5 and younger) and an inspirational message. Then simply share the photo and fundraising campaign profile with family, friends and others through your social network, and encourage others to contribute a donation.

The contestant who generates the highest amount of financial contributions will be named the 2010 21st Century Child, and will win a $2,100 Apple gift card. The next six highest fundraisers will win an Apple iPad. And really, everyone will win this contest, because everyone who participates will know they helped a good cause.

The wonders of Kansas

by Beth Finke

Last year at about this time I traveled to Topeka with my Seeing Eye dog to visit Easter Seals Capper Foundation in Topeka, Kansas. A story in the Capital Journal did a beautiful job describing our visit.

Jim Leiker, president and chief executive officer of Easter Seals Capper Foundation, explained the purpose of Finke’s visit to Kidlink, which is an inclusive preschool and child care program for children with or without disabilities.

“She has a disability and has lots of challenges,” Leiker said, “and she has lots of goals and dreams, and she’s been able to achieve those. I think that’s a really positive message for the kids.”

The Capital Journal also took a lot of terrific pictures of me, Hanni, and the kids — here’s
the gallery.

Plenty of the kids in the preschool had autism, but truth is, without being able to see them, I couldn’t tell. Some were scared of Hanni, some couldn’t stop hugging her. Some seemed shy, others wanted to jump on my lap. Which were symptoms of autism, and which were symptoms of … well … childhood? Who knew? All we did know is that something different was happening in the room that day, and that we were all having fun.

This week I got word that Arthur Capper, the founder of Easter Seals Capper Foundation, is one of the 24 finalists in the 8 Wonders of Kansas People Contest. My friends at Easter Seals Capper Foundation are excited about this, as it’s a great way to bring awareness to the people they serve — children and families living with autism and other disabilities.

Easter Seals Capper Foundation needs your help to spread the word. You can vote for Arthur Capper online, and you don’t have to live in Kansas to cast a vote. You can vote THREE times, and you need to cast your votes by October 22.

Thanks for helping my pals at Easter Seals Capper Foundation make sure that Arthur Capper becomes one of the top 8 Wonders of Kansas. Your vote will make families living with autism and other disabilities aware of the fabulous services available to them at Easter Seals Capper Foundation.

Go-to sources for making autism treatment decisions

by Patricia Wright

After the initial apprehension and anxiety of learning their child has autism, parents are often at a loss about what to do next. “What should we do?” is a fair question, given that when you Google the word autism you get 16 million hits!

In an article in the Huffington Post, jewelry designer Ariane Zurcher shared her family’s journey in autism treatment.

Desperation makes for odd decisions, and perhaps one can explain everything we’ve tried and done by simply leaving it at that. On the other hand, unless one is a scientist, and most parents of autistic children I know are not, how does one choose what will help one’s child when all we have to go on is anecdotal evidence?

I know that some of the treatments her family pursued have no evidence base. But how do families know what is and is not grounded in evidence? What makes one of those 16 million hits better than another?

As a professional I hope that my voice can provide families with a bit of guidance in discerning the plethora of content that gets promulgated. At least then, families will be better prepared to make informed decisions. They may still make decisions different than what I believe would provide the most benefit to their child, but again, I am not that child’s parent.

Here are some go- to sources to consider when making autism treatment decisions:

• Centers for Disease Control
• National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
• Association for Science in Autism Treatment
• National Institute of Mental Health

One other great tool for evaluating treatment options is an article from the Association for Science in Autism Treatment. The article, called A Road Less Traveled, (PDF) helps families to ask the right questions, gather the right information and make informed decisions.

As a professional it is my job to support families to make informed decisions. I will never really know what it is like to make a treatment decision for my child with autism, and I will never feel the angst parents experience in trying to evaluate those 16 million Google hits. I do know that I can be an informed voice, sharing expertise, and exhibiting compassion.

“Temple Grandin” wins at the Emmys

by Beth Finke

You may know by now that HBO’s bio-flick about Temple Grandin won five Emmy awards last month, including Outstanding Made for TV Movie. I thought you might be interested in reading how the Hollywood press responded to the winnings. A story called ‘Temple Grandin’ wins big at Emmys. But who is she? ran in Entertainment Weekly:

Who is Temple Grandin? Her name was called out seven times at last night’s Emmy Awards, where the rancher-attired Grandin herself was “a palpable presence.”

A story in the L.A. Times does a great job in answering that question:

Grandin was there, of course, as part of the HBO movie named after her, in which she was played by the Best Actress in a Miniseries or Movie-winning Claire Danes.

Born in 1947, Grandin was diagnosed as autistic at a young age due to her inability to speak or function socially like other children. As an adult, Grandin became a renowned public advocate for those born on the autistic spectrum. Her high-functioning autism ultimately allowed her to earn a doctorate in animal science, become a university professor, and pen an autobiography about her experiences.

During the acceptance speeches, all five winners paid tribute to Grandin.

Danes described her as “the most brave woman I’ve known.” [Director Mick] Jackson called her “spunky, smart and vivid,” saying he wanted to make a movie that was “never sentimental.”

Sounds to me like the director reached his goal! Congrats to all the Emmy winners, and especially congrats to the real winner: Temple Grandin.

Thank you, Mayor Daley!

by Maurice Snell

Here in Chicago, history is being made. Mayor Richard M. Daley has announced that he will not run for re-election next year.

Some people may say that it’s finally time for Mayor Daley to hand over his throne. Others don’t want this legacy to end.

I, for one, respect his decision of stepping down from the mayor’s seat as Chicago aims to move in a different direction ahead. For those who knew Mayor Daley best, he is Chicago. He’s a huge White Sox fan, he played a major role in attempting to get the Olympics to come to Chicago, he helped build Millennium Park, expanded O’Hare International Airport … the list goes on. With all that, though, nothing compares to the huge heart he has for Easter Seals.

You might remember a previous post I wrote about meeting Mayor Daley. I was fortunate enough to meet this famous Chicago mayor on several occasions. On most occasions, it was related to Easter Seals. The Mayor was a big supporter of Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago. He was one of the main figures to take part in building the Easter Seals Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research and was more than willing to donate some of the land of the Illinois Medical District where the state-of-the-art therapeutic school stands today.

I’m grateful to the Mayor doing his part to build a greater future for many children with autism as well as other individuals living with disabilities. Without Mayor Daley, there might not have been a “new” Easter Seals. Thank you, Mayor Daley for serving 21 wonderful years in Chicago.

Ms. Lynn’s Boys and the passing of precious time

by Lynn Dudek

Read Lynn Dudek’s biography

Time. It’s something most of us have too little of, need a whole lot more of, and feel passes too quickly. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been reflecting on time and how it relates to the lives I’ve been involved in for about 12 years.

I’ve been a speech-language pathologist for 18 years and have focused on autism for about 16 of those years. About ten years ago I met a group of boys who will forever be referred to as “Ms. Lynn’s Boys.” As Autism Services Manager here at Easter Seals Central and South East Ohio, I started a little social skills group with Ms Lynn’s Boys. It turned out to be the first of many social skills groups I would put together, but this one will always be special.

We started meeting over the summers between school years, and after a couple years of decided to go year round. Time passed, and my boys learned to take turns, negotiate, and make choices.

More time passed, and when it became obvious I was having a child of my own, my boys were intrigued. They wondered why I was having children. One of my boys had a major meltdown when mom got the call I was in labor and he was told that after the baby was born I’d be on maternity leave. Later on, he explained. He was just upset because he wanted to make sure Ms. Lynn would still love him even though she had a baby of her own. Of course I would — how could I not? And look at that skill — perspective taking, questioning, explaining!

Time marched on. We all went through puberty — that was fun. I have two girls of my own — puberty for a tween girl and five boys with Asperger’s is VERY different. Time passed and we got through it. We learned the difference between glancing at a pretty girl and stalker eyes, how to ask someone on a date, what to do when they say no — or even better — YES!

Time passed, and, well, now Ms. Lynn’s boys are in high school. A couple of them will graduate next year. Over the years our social skills groups have changed — focus, topics, needs. We’ve stayed in the center and we’ve taken field trips. We have spent the entire hour consoling a friend who was turned down by the girl he liked. We’ve also spent time laughing until we cried, all because of the joke someone learned or the impression of Ms. Lynn they did.

I’ve learned a lot by the passing of this time. I’m a much better therapist because I’ve been permitted to spend so much time with my boys. Time has also taught me that these boys are going to be ok. They are always going to have struggles here and there and I hope they know Ms. Lynn will always be here for them.

But if time has taught me nothing else it is that the time we get to spend with the children, teens, young adults, and grown-ups with autism is precious time. We must make the most of it for those we serve so they have an easier time going through life.

Autism assistance animals allowed, as long as they’re dogs

by Beth Finke

Revisions made to the Department of Justice’s ADA regulations last July should help assure parents that children with autism can bring their assistance animals to school with them this year … as long as that animal is a dog, that is.

Department of Justice regulations (implementing Title III of the ADA) used to define a service animal as:

any guide dog, signal dog or other animal individually trained to provide assistance for the benefit of an individual with a disability.

The revisions define a service animal as:

any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability.

Notice the specific word dog in that sentence. Aside from one provision for miniature horses, other species of animals (whether wild or domestic, trained or untrained) are no longer deemed service animals. That means monkeys, parrots, rodents, and reptiles, among others, will no longer be permitted to accompany individuals with disabilities into places of public accommodation.

These regulations will take effect six months after the date they are published in the Federal Register, and as far as I can tell, the new revisions do not limit the age of the person using the service animal. So as long as autism is considered a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and as long as the child with autism is with a dog that has been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the child’s benefit,well, then it looks like the dog will be allowed to go with that child to school.

Teaching special skills to special kids

by Beth Finke

In my role as moderator of the Easter Seals and autism blog, I get a fair amount of email come-ons from companies that sell services to help people who have autism. Every year at this time, the volume of email messages like this grows. You know, beginning of the school year and all.

Take this one I got the other day. The subject heading read “back to school special” and the message talked about Laminated Photo Cards. The front of each card asks a question, the back has the beginning of an answer to that question. You read the card aloud, and the child with autism flips the card over and finds words to finish the answer supplied on the back.

On special, the cards sold for less than $30. Really?

Pardon my skepticism, but would these cards really work? Even if they did, couldn’t you make them yourself for far less money at home? I put the email aside. Until my husband came home from a visit to see our son, that is.

Gus is 23 years old now and lives with friends in a group home. Something he did on this last visit reminded my husband and me of Gus’ school days. Gus had an enjoyable afternoon out with his dad and didn’t want it to end. To let his dad know this, Gus banged his head, a behavior we haven’t witnessed in Gus in years. He and his dad took one last walk around the block then, and all was well.

When Gus was in school, he never wanted to go back inside after recess. Well, actually, that wasn’t the problem. The thing he was fighting was the quick transition. He wanted to know he was about to go in, rather than suddenly being forced inside.

Teachers and assistants tried to talk Gus through the transition, tell him it was time to go inside. Gus wouldn’t — or couldn’t — listen. They got out picture boards, augmentative and alternative communication devices. Nothing worked.

And then his teacher came up with an idea. We collected baseball caps, and minutes before it was time to go inside, one of the caps would be placed on Gus’ head. Eureka! It worked! Gus made the connection. Cap on, time to go inside.

And so, who am I to question the laminated photo cards? They’ll probably work for someone out there, someone who has tried all sorts of other methods to teach communication skills. And as for the notion of making them yourself, who has time for that when raising a child with a disability? Guess I’ll keep opening the email come-ons, you never know what might work when it comes to teaching special skills to special kids.

Dating, with autism

by Beth Finke

In case you missed it, I wanted to let you know that our guest blogger, Laura Shumaker had a piece published in the New York Times last Friday. You might remember the post Laura wrote for us in March about providing evidence-based treatment for individuals with autism through the lifespan. Laura’s essay in the New York Times — about a trip she took with her 23-year-old son Matthew, who has autism, — is a brilliant example of how he and his mom are continuing to learn. From the NY Times essay:

When I planned the trip to Washington, I could never have known that the hotel that I had picked was also the hotel that a team of female college lacrosse players had chosen and that they would be bouncing through the lobby in bikinis.

I could never have known that they would mistake the handsome Matthew for a “neurotypical” 23-year-old man and that they would invite him to join them in the hot tub later.

I could not have predicted that after a quick dinner in the hotel restaurant, Matthew would insist on waiting by the Jacuzzi “without my mother” until the girls joined him two hours later. Or that I would be hiding and watching from behind a treadmill in the bordering workout room when the girls showed up, figured out that Matthew was not what they expected, giggled nervously and vanished.

Laura found herself consoling her distraught son after that incident. The Shumakers cut their vacation short, headed back home.

But in a strange way, I was grateful for the incident at the hotel. He wanted to meet women. He wanted a relationship, and I needed to help him.

They say that when it comes to parenting, your job never ends. This is all the more true when you have a child with autism. How lucky Matthew is to have an honest and understanding mother like Laura.