Yesterday I attended the Spotlight on Autism Conference here in Utah.

I think autism is a very interesting disorder and would love to learn more about it. I have been working in early intervention for almost 6 months now and have seen quite a few kids with autism. Each child is unique and requires very different yet similar treatment approaches (if that makes any sense).

The conference offered different sessions regarding diagnosis and treatment. The keynote speaker was Sally Ozonoff, Ph.D who spoke about the research she’s been doing on very young children with autism. Recently there has been a push for doctors to screen all children birth to three for autism and children are being diagnosed with autism at younger and younger ages. Basically her research has found that the onset of autism can be gradual with the emergence of symptoms around 6 months of age to 18 months of age. She also found that a regression in skills (such as communication and social interaction) is common.

With these results we now need to start educating pediatricians and other professionals about the impact this can have on early treatment. Not that I’m looking for more work but think of the difference we can make if we start identifying children with autism earlier - especially those who are mildly affected. We also need to research the most effective treatment for younger children with autism. Is 40 hours of ABA appropriate? Don’t even get me started!

Anyway. I am very glad I was able to attend the conference and look forward to the conference next year (Temple Grandin is going to be the keynote speaker). I bought an Autism Awareness Ribbon at the conference and it came with a card that explained it’s design so I’d like to share that with you.

The puzzle pattern of the ribbon reflects the mystery and complexity of autism. The different colors and shapes represents the diversity of the people and families living with this disorder. The brightness of the ribbon signals hope - hope through research and increased awareness in people like you.

If you’d live to learn more about autism, visit Autism Speaks.

Thanks for reading!

Five for Fighting has a neat way of raising money and awareness for certain charities. Every time you watch one of the videos on their site they donate up to $0.49 to the particular charity.

I watched the video for Autism Speaks titled “Our Boys, Our Purpose”. It is a well done video with some interesting facts about Autism. I hope you take the time to watch it.

“Wishing life were different doesn’t change reality”