I “get” Jenny McCarthy…

When the thought that something was not quite the norm with Bob I began searching for answers. I googled A LOT! I found myself on YouTube and websites for child development. I looked for videos of children my son’s age. I searched for comparisons. I searched for answers. I was scared, confused, and grasping at anything that would answer my questions about my son. Why did he walk on his tiptoes? Why didn’t he answer to his name? Why didn’t he play with his toys?

I stumbled upon McCarthy’s book and foundation. I read her book and I cried; because her son was like my son in many ways. I didn’t know at the time that when you meet one autistic child/person you have met one person. They are all so different…hence autism being considered a spectrum and a conglomeration of comorbids. I didn’t know that back then..what feels like a thousand years ago, when in reality it has only been a year and a half, that her my son were different and the same in many ways.

When Bob received his formal diagnosis, I had already decided on ABA therapy and GFCF diet and a DAN doctor. All due to McCarthy and some limited research I had done. I talked about a cure for Bob. I was so happy we had caught him at an early enough age that a window of opportunity was there for my child to be recovered. I didn’t know. I trusted another mother who had a struggle with her son that seemed so similar to mine. She fought for him the same way I would fight for mine, tooth and nail.

What I didn’t know then, I do now. I know that not all protocols are for all autistics. I know that my child has no need to be recovered. He was never lost. I know that not all people or organizations are to be relied upon as the be all end all for your child. I know that the more I network and the more that I read the better I become at mapping out the appropriate path for my son.
I know that the best support and ideas and explanation for my son have not come from the internet, doctors, therapists, or a tv star, but from the people I have met and networked with via facebook. Other parents in the trenches, so to speak, they have been on this journey longer than my family. They have been my go to. Adult autistics who have followed Bob’s journey and have offered explanations from their perspective about my child’s behavior, these cyber people have been the biggest help.

So, when I say I “get” Jenny McCarthy…I do. I am thankful for her telling her story. It was the springboard for our families journey. (Minus the no vaccination thing). Even though the community in general despises her for falsehoods she has presented and possibly misrepresenting her child’s diagnosis It’s still like all of us…her child’s journey, no matter how misguided the mother. If you are a veteran parent,as a community, as human beings, help the newbie families…share your knowledge…offer support and an ear…
We must help each other…we must listen to each other..we must be the Autism Community that we all claim to be a part of….

Ain’t nobody gonna make it so…but us….

Love and hugs,
Lori
Bob and Sissy’s mommy