A few months ago I sat in my daughters psychiatrists office listening intensely as he explained her diagnoses to me. One by one he went down the list; some I was familiar with other left me clueless. Oh goody more googling when I get home. I was saying the words over in my head so that I would properly remember them upon leaving. It was then that he mentioned ASD. Now this was a term I was very familiar with, I first heard it when my daughter was about 5 years old.
ASD = Autism Spectrum Disorder
Before, for her, it was a theory...never confirmed. But on that chilly Fall day; my "fears" were brought to life. Why fears? Simply put, I had been following Autism Speaks since her PCP originally mentioned his belief that she may be autistic. Why would following Autism Speaks bring out fears? Glad you asked!
These are words that Autism Speaks uses to talk about Autistic people and their our families:
Barely Living. Battle. Burden. Crisis. Crusade. Despair. Fear. Missing.
My daughter's life, our life is beautiful and chaotic, joyful and mundane. Yet, Autism Speaks is telling me, telling us, telling the world to HATE...to HATE my daughter, to hate my family, to hate our families.
