Ido in Autismland

Author: Ido Kedar
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780988324701
Category : Autism in children
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Ido in Autismland opens a window into non-verbal autism through dozens of short, autobiographical essays each offering new insights into autism symptoms, effective and ineffective treatments and the inner emotional life of a severely autistic boy. In his pithy essays, author Ido Kedar, a brilliant sixteen year old with autism, challenges what he believes are misconceptions in many theories that dominate autism treatment today while he simultaneously chronicles his personal growth in his struggles to overcome his limitations. Ido spent the first half of his life locked internally, in silence, trapped in a remedial educational system that presumed he lacked the most basic comprehension, and unable to show the world that he understood everything. But at the age of seven, Ido was finally able to show that he had an intact mind and could understand. This led to the quest to find a system of communication that he could use despite his impaired motor control. Through the use of a letter board, and now an iPad, Ido has triumphed communicatively, enabling him to flourish in a regular high school in all general education classes. But Ido has a larger goal. He does not want to be seen as an isolated autistic exception with miraculously advanced cognitive and communication abilities. He wants people to see that thousands of other severely autistic individuals have the same capacity, but remain trapped and locked-in, as he was, unable to show their true capacities. These individuals desperately need new theories and new methods to help them break free too. Of importance to neuro-researchers, educators, psychologists, doctors, parents, friends, family and people with autism, Ido in Autismland will change our collective understanding of severe autism. PRAISE FOR Ido in Autismland "There are doubtless many Idos in this world, unable to speak, yet possessing good intellectual ability and, most certainly, a rich emotional life. And yet, precisely because they cannot communicate, nonverbal individuals with autism are nearly always consigned to the junk heap of mental deficiency, branded as incapable of understanding language or even having feelings... We need to help change things for this terribly neglected group... Reading Ido's book is a good beginning." - Portia Iversen, Co-founder, Cure Autism Now and the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange Gene Bank. Author of Strange Son "Ido is a brilliant communicator. His words bring us inside the world of autism. His gift of writing enlightens, inspires, educates. Every person who loves or works with someone with autism - educator, therapist, karent, grandparent, neighbor - should read Ido in Autismland." - Elaine Hall, Author of Now I See the Moon, co-author of Seven Keys to Unlock Autism. Featured in Autism: The Musical "Ido's book touches any heart, not only because it is well written, but because it reveals a mind that has learned how to speak to the world through spelling every word on a letter board and keyboard. His book is indeed a great gift to the world. Thank you, Ido." - Soma Mukhopadhyay, Executive Director of Education, HALO, Author of Understanding Autism through Rapid Prompting Method

Ido in Autismland. Climbing Out of Autism's Silent Prison

Author: Ido Kedar
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781310011078
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Book Description
What is autism? Is it a long list of behaviors, or is it more? Experts looked at my outside deficits--eye contact impairment, hand flapping and social delay-and concluded that my inside was equally impaired. They assumed I did not understand language, recognize my parents or have a thought more advanced than a toddler's. They supposed my brain could be molded in increments by drilling me on names and basic nouns, or by telling me to jump, or sit, or touch my nose--over and over. This was the educational model I grew up with. Now, I am telling you what I couldn't tell my experts when I was stuck in my silent prison for so many years: you were wrong. Worse, you were treating the wrong symptoms.In my essays I explain autism from the inside out. It is my dream that my book will help my friends and so many other non-verbal autistic people to be liberated, as I was. I want a cure and I want communication now for all those still trapped in silence. Thank you for listening to a silent boy no more.-- Ido Kedar, at age 13

I Am in Here

Author: Elizabeth M. Bonker
Publisher: Baker Books
ISBN: 1441237844
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 219

Book Description
She looked into my eyes and blinked hers slowly and deliberately, like a stroke victim, to show me that although she couldn't speak, she understood what I was saying to her. I stroked her hair softly. 'I know you're in there, honey,' I told her. 'We'll get you out.'" Despite the horror of seeing fifteen-month-old Elizabeth slip away into autism, her mother knew that her bright little girl was still in there. When Elizabeth eventually learned to communicate, first by using a letterboard and later by typing, the poetry she wrote became proof of a glorious, life-affirming victory for this young girl and her family. I Am in Here is the spiritual journey of a mother and daughter who refuse to give up hope, who celebrate their victories, and who keep trying to move forward despite the obstacles. Although she cannot speak, Elizabeth writes poetry that shines a light on the inner world of autism and the world around us. That poetry and her mother's stirring storytelling combine in this inspirational book to proclaim that there is always a reason to take the next step forward--with hope.

In Two Worlds

Author: Ido Kedar
Publisher: Double Buck Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 9781732291508
Category : Autism in children
Languages : en
Pages : 308

Book Description
Seven-year-old Anthony has autism. He flaps his hands. He makes strange noises. He can't speak or otherwise communicate his thoughts. Treatments, therapies, and theories about his condition define his daily existence. Yet Anthony isn't improving much. Year after year his remedial lessons drone on. Anthony gets older and taller, but his speech remains elusive and his school lessons never advance. Life seems to be passing him by. Until one day, everything changes. In Two Worlds is a compelling tale, rich with unforgettable characters who are navigating their way through the multitude of theories about autism that for decades have dictated the lives of thousands of children and their families. This debut work of fiction sheds light on the inner and outer lives of children with nonspeaking autism, and on their two worlds. As one of the only works of fiction written by a person with non-speaking autism, it offers readers an unprecedented insider's point-of-view into autism and life in silence, and it does so with warmth, humor and a wickedly sharp intellect.

Carly's Voice

Author: Arthur Fleischmann
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439194165
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 380

Book Description
In this international bestseller, father and advocate for Autism awareness Arthur Fleischmann blends his daughter Carly’s own words with his story of getting to know his remarkable daughter—after years of believing that she was unable to understand or communicate with him. At the age of two, Carly Fleischmann was diagnosed with severe autism and an oral motor condition that prevented her from speaking. Doctors predicted that she would never intellectually develop beyond the abilities of a small child. Carly remained largely unreachable through the years. Then, at the age of ten, she had a breakthrough. While working with her devoted therapists, Carly reached over to their laptop and typed “HELP TEETH HURT,” much to everyone’s astonishment. Although Carly still struggles with all the symptoms of autism, she now has regular, witty, and profound conversations on the computer with her family and her many thousands of supporters online. One of the first books to explore firsthand the challenges of living with autism, Carly’s Voice brings readers inside a once-secret world in the company of an inspiring young woman who has found her voice and her mission

Let Me Hear Your Voice

Author: Catherine Maurice
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0449906647
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 401

Book Description
She was a beautiful doelike child, with an intense, graceful fragility. In her first year, she picked up words, smiled and laughed, and learned to walk. But then Anne-Marie began to turn inward. And when her little girl lost some of the words she had acquired, cried inconsolably, and showed no interest in anyone around her, Catherine Maurice took her to doctors who gave her a devastating diagnosis: autism. In their desperate struggle to save their daughter, the Maurices plunged into a medical nightmare of false hopes, "miracle cures," and infuriating suggestions that Anne-Marie's autism was somehow their fault. Finally, Anne-Marie was saved by an intensive behavioral therapy. Let Me Hear Your Voice is a mother's illuminating account of how one family triumphed over autism. It is an absolutely unforgettable book, as beautifully written as it is informative. "A vivid and uplifting story . . . Offers new strength to parents who refuse to give up on their autistic children." -- Kirkus Reviews "Outstanding . . . Heartfelt . . . A lifeline to families in similar circumstances." -- Library Journal

Beyond the Silence

Author: Tito Rajarshi Mukhopadhyay
Publisher: National Autistic Society
ISBN: 9781899280315
Category : Autism
Languages : en
Pages : 114

Book Description

I'm Not a Poet but I Write Poetry

Author: Tito Rajarshi Mukhopadhyay
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 1477126392
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 72

Book Description
Tito Rajarshi Mukhopadhyay, a leading poet (though he does not acknowledge it) and memoirist of the experience of autism, was born in India in 1988. Tito was diagnosed with severe autism at the age of three, but his mother Soma, with fi erce hope and determination, devised an intensive rapid prompting method to teach Tito to read and write. In 2001, Tito and his mother came to the United States to begin work collaborating with doctors, re-searchers, and advocates in order to better understand and support individuals with autism. At a very early age, Tito began expressing himself in prose and poetry and numerous collections of his work have been published (see below). More recently, Tito has become a leading fi gure in the neurodiversity movement, challenging conventional measures of mental states and abilities. As Tito describes himself: “Human beings have classifi ed each other based on religion, country, disorders and of course in today’s world their sexual choices. It is easy to recognize each other based on classifi cation. Hence, doctors have classifi ed me with Autism.” Tito’s life and work have been featured widely in the media, including “Sixty Minutes”,“Good Morning America,” The New York Times, Scientifi c American, National Geographic, PBS, CNN, Disability Studies Quarterly and in the documentaries Tito’s Story (BBC, 1999) and A Mother’s Courage (HBO, 2010) Tito now lives in Austin, Texas, where his mother directs the autism organization HALO http://www.halo-soma.org and Tito and his mother make frequent presentations to autism education and advocacy organizations nationwide.

Underestimated

Author: J. B. Handley
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1510766375
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 168

Book Description
The incredibly moving and inspiring story about a quest to finally be heard. In Underestimated: An Autism Miracle, Generation Rescue’s cofounder J.B. Handley and his teenage son Jamison tell the remarkable story of Jamison’s journey to find a method of communication that allowed him to show the world that he was a brilliant, wise, generous, and complex individual who had been misunderstood and underestimated by everyone in his life. Jamison’s emergence at the age of seventeen from his self-described “prison of silence” took place over a profoundly emotional and dramatic twelve-month period that is retold from his father’s perspective. The book reads like a spy thriller while allowing the reader to share in the complex emotions of both exhilaration and anguish that accompany Jamison’s journey for him and his family. Once Jamison’s extraordinary story has been told, Jamison takes over the narrative to share the story from his perspective, allowing the world to hear from someone who many had dismissed and cast aside as incapable. Jamison’s remarkable transformation challenges the conventional wisdom surrounding autism, a disability impacting 1 in 36 Americans. Many scientists still consider nonspeakers with autism—a full 40 percent of those on the autism spectrum—to be “mentally retarded.” Is it possible that the experts are wrong about several million people? Are all the nonspeakers like Jamison? Underestimated: An Autism Miracle will touch your heart, inspire you, remind you of the power of love, and ultimately leave you asking tough questions about how many more Jamisons might be waiting for their chance to be freed from their prison of silence, too. And, for the millions of parents of children with autism, the book offers a detailed description of a communication method that may give millions of people with autism back their voice.

What Color is Monday?

Author: Carrie Cariello
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
ISBN: 1784500941
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Book Description
"One day Jack asked me, 'What color do you see for Monday?' 'What?' I said distractedly. 'Do you see days as colors?" Raising five children would be challenge enough for most parents, but when one of them has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, life becomes a bit more chaotic, a lot more emotional, and full of fascinating glimpses into a unique child's different way of thinking. In this moving memoir, Carrie Cariello invites us to take a peek into exactly what it takes to get through each day juggling the needs of her whole family. Through hilarious mishaps, honest insights, and heartfelt letters addressed to her children, she shows us the beauty and wonder of raising a child who views the world through a different lens, and how ultimately autism changed her family for the better.