Labeled the Invisible Disability

Father of Autistic Child Talks About Understanding Autism

“I call autism the invisible disability. You can walk into a room and tell a child or an adult has Downs Syndrome. Autism is often masked with other forms because our children don’t look any different from other children.”

That comment came from Jerry Lund of Autism Conferences of America, himself the father of an autistic child. He spoke about the autism just before the 7th Annual “Back to School” Autism/Aspergers Conference at the PasadenaConvention Center.

Called the most comprehensive Autism/Aspergers seminar in Southern California, the conference was open to students with Autism/Aspergers, their parents and family members, and professionals. He said the conferences are designed for parents, educators, or family members touched by Autism and Aspergers.

“It’s about informing people about autism and its many forms,” stated Lund. “We have a variety of people who show up, anything from the newly diagnosed family to professionals, doctors, nurses, attendant care personnel. It’s a full two-day conference with multiple tracks We have the whole gamut.

“It’s a different audience than when we first started because more people have been diagnosed with it. It was more about professionals because we were trying to get information out there and to get people educated about autism,” Lund explained. “The numbers have grown since then. I think the parents always worked for the professionals but, since then I’ve learned in my own experience that sometimes the parents are more educated than the professionals.”

Lund admitted that there are still many misconceptions among the public because autism is viewed like the movie Rain Man, which featured Tom Cruise who has an autistic brother portrayed by Dustin Hoffman. Lund maintained that all kids are not like the character in Rain Man because it is only one form of autism. He said a good portion of the autistic community is non-verbal or they can be perceived like that.

“There are a lot of unknowns about autism,” Lund clarified. “People need to be educated because it really is the invisible disability. Just because a child displays a tantrum on the floor of the store, doesn’t mean the child is a brat.

“I’ve heard that more than once. ‘Can’t you control your bratty kid? No, I’m sorry. My child has autism and there’s a reason why he’s doing what he does.’ The term has gotten out more. People know the word more now, but they still need to be educated.”

By way of comparison, more children are diagnosed with autism each year than with juvenile diabetes, AIDS or cancer, combined. Autistic Spectrum Disorder affects over 2 million people in the U.S. Lund said that when his child was first diagnosed, people didn’t know what autism was and they once again just thought of Rain Man. He said that while people may not necessarily be a person with autism, they probably know someone who has autism.

“The numbers are now about one in 95. That’s the official number,” said Lund. “As with parents within the group, we feel it is much larger. I actually think it’s more like one in ten. The official number is one in 95, but boys are more affected. It is more like one in fifty of every male child born today.”

Recognizing the abilities that appear locked inside children with Autism is one of the goals of the conference, Lund said. Learning how to prevent meltdowns, getting strategies for teaching social skills, and finding out how to increase peer acceptance are among the general sessions and breakout sessions featured at the Pasadena conference.

“There’s a form of autism called Aspergers.” explained Lund. “I don’t particularly like it because unfortunately, when a child gets labeled as Aspergers they don’t get services provided by the state or the federal government because they’re considered high functioning. Labeling a person as Aspergers doesn’t help the person even though it falls within the spectrum of autism. They believe the person is high functioning so they don’t believe that person needs any services or that the government should have to pay for it.

“I know a person who has five PhDs and he has Aspergers,” Lund continued. “He cannot get a job because socially he is inept. He doesn’t get the social cues. Even to work at Taco Bell, he can’t, because he doesn’t get the cues. ‘Hi my name is so-and-so. Can I take your order?’ He doesn’t get it. He goes from job to job to job. Even at Wal-Mart, working as a greeter, he was unable to do it because he doesn’t get the social cues, even though he has five PhDs.”

For more information about the Autism Conference, call 626-793-2122 or visit the conference website at: www.autismconferencesofamerica.com.

Copyright 2012 by S. R. Morris