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Original poster

autism article in today's (sat) guardian

26 replies

katierocket · 24/04/2004 19:32

just wondered if anyone else read it (magazine section) single mum with 3 boys, two of whom are autistic. Really interesting and gave a real insight into caring for autistic children.

OP posts:
maomao · 24/04/2004 19:46

Here's the link

Original poster
katierocket · 24/04/2004 19:47

thanks maomao.

OP posts:
Jimjams · 24/04/2004 19:54

What a good piece. Very accurate. I hate the constant watching and never being able to switch off.

I love the bit at the end about never having to watch your autistic child ham it up when they're ill. It's something that my friend and I have noticed about our younger (2 year old) NT son's. They both ham it up when ill. Complete dying swan act. Our autisitc children just lie quietly on the sofa.

Original poster
katierocket · 24/04/2004 19:57

At the risk of sounding like a stalker jimjams, I thought of you when I read it. I like the gentle humour she put into the article. and the line that they are always "just themselves"

OP posts:
Chandra · 24/04/2004 20:22

Agree with KR, I actually was wondering if you (JimJams) have written the article, is good to see you here I was looking for you. Have a couple of questions but it doesn't seem very correct to kidnap this thread...

maomao · 24/04/2004 20:32

What a well-written piece! Thanks for bringing it to my attention, katierocket.

KPB · 24/04/2004 20:44

I remember this family from a programme I watched on autism about a year a go and I really warmed to her then. Found that very honest and interesting!!!!

OldieMum · 24/04/2004 20:59

Is she the same woman who had a regular column in the Guardian a few years ago, all about living with her autistic children? That had similar kinds of insight and humour.

Jimjams · 24/04/2004 21:03

yes she is OldieMum. I remember the first time I read something by her. Ds1 was 11 months and I was waiting in a hospital pharmacy to pick up medication for his eczema herpeticum. Ironically it was that which I now think tipped him over. I was bowled over by her piece- of course not realising how apt it was about to get.....

OldieMum · 24/04/2004 21:06

I know someone who is a friend of hers and she says she is wonderful.

twiglett · 24/04/2004 21:13

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twiglett · 24/04/2004 21:13

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coppertop · 24/04/2004 21:37

What a brilliant article! So many parts of it sounded so familiar. The little rituals that HAVE to be followed precisely or the whole process starts all over again. The way the children don't care if they're lost. I also agree with the lack of hamming it up when ill. It's only recently that ds1 will even say "I hurt". Before he would literally be on his hands and knees and gasping for air in the middle of a sudden asthma attack - and still not think to let anyone know.

Davros · 25/04/2004 11:01

Did anyone see that thing on TV last week where two people represent a different book and get witnesses to support them and then there's a studio vote? Mariella Frostrup was representing The Curious Incident and her witnesses where a Prof of Lit from Oxford (!) and CHarlotte Moore. It was excellent. Unfortunately the spotty students in the studio chose the other book by a small margin, Vernon God Little. One point the other side made was that The Curious Incident wasn't a good representation of AS (as if that makes any difference to if the book is any good) but then Mariela came up with Charlotte Moore who blew him away (and that Prof).

motherinferior · 25/04/2004 19:25

I talked to Charlotte Moore for a piece I wrote on autism for She a couple of years back. She was really nice, and she kept stressing that whole point about how her sons are her sons, they are special and they are wonderful and autism is part of who they are.

WideWebWitch · 25/04/2004 22:52

I read it and thought it was a touching snapshot of life with her boys.

jmb1964 · 25/04/2004 23:08

Thanks - a great article. Jimjams - what a sad and painful memory for you - but did you mean the medication or the eczema herpeticum tipped him over?
I used to read Charlotte Moore's columns too, and had a gradual realisation over several months that what we were dealing with might be somewhere along the same lines, if much milder and only (for the moment, fingers crossed) in the one child

Thomcat · 26/04/2004 10:11

It was a brilliant article. It was terribly sad at the end when she spoke of wishing she could just read a book, watch TV, have a bath

However the article as a whole was positive and I liked when she said something along the lines of he was just her son and now she new why he did some of the things he did, (when she got the diagnosis)

Jimjams · 26/04/2004 11:13

jmb- perhaps both....... I susepct he's a child who had a series of hits (including things like lots of ear infections). Of course the herpes virus itself is nasty, but as well as acyclovir and steroids he was put on 3 courses of antibiotics in 3 weeks- including one prescribed by a consultant that was not meant to be used in children under 2 (neither the GP nor pharmacist were happy about him having it). After the e herpeticum he stopped gaze monitering, and stopped eating his wide diet (used to eat everything) and would only eat bread and cheerios (literally). Then stopped talking. The whole gluten craving makes me think the antibiotics played a part in making his gut leaky- and a year and a bit later he tested positive for having leaky gut at Sunderland

clary · 26/04/2004 14:08

I'm an interloper on the SN threads but I do have an interest (hello Sinclair). Just wanted to say that this article moved me so much, what a wonderful mother she must be to be so positive about what must be an incredibly difficult and draining situation. I have renewed sympathy and admiration for all of you who are dealing with special needs children and it puts any of my worries into perspective.

Jimjams · 26/04/2004 15:38

At the time we didn't notice loss of gaze monitoring- that was from videos that I forced myself to watch about 6 months ago. We did notice that he refused to put his skin on grass- would refuse to stand on it and if sat on it with shorts on would hold his legs up in the air so they weren't touching the grass. We thought that was becuase of his eczema, but now I guess his sensory systems had gone into overload! Worst thing is we have lots of photos of that as we thought it was funny

jmb1964 · 26/04/2004 23:19

Jimjams
Sorry if I've reminded you of painful things - it's not as if you're short of reminders anyway. We're about to do the Sunderland test for ds1, and I also worry now and then about ds2 who is just 2 and has been on prophylactic trimethoprim since he was about 3 days old as he has a poorly draining kidney..
Several people have mentioned the Guardian article to me today - the raising of public awareness must be a good thing.

Jimjams · 27/04/2004 09:43

Well the good thing about the Sunderland test is it gives you some clues. We saw a big difference making ds1 gluten free- within days. It doesn't work for everyone though and I like the Sunderland test as you get an idea whether or not it will work for you.

I could have cried when ds2 had antibiotics at 6 weeks of age (cord infection). In fact I did cry! Sometimes they need them though I shoved him full of probiotics though and he's fine!

pamina3 · 27/04/2004 12:41

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robinw · 12/05/2004 11:32

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