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Happy World Autism Awareness Day!

I’ve written about autism. Many. Many. Many times. It’s part of my everyday life.

With 1 in every 110 children now being diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, there’s a good chance that autism is part of your life, too – or that you at least know someone (me?) who is affected.

So how does one celebrate such a day? (Or an entire month, for that matter, since April is Autism Awareness Month.)

Well, if you’ve got a kid on the spectrum, the first thing to do is hug him (or her, but it’s four times more likely to be a him) and remind yourself how lucky you are to have this little (or big) person in your life. (This same process can be followed with typical kids even though it’s not Neurotypical Awareness Day.)

Next, you might want to consider donating to Autism Speaks or another autism-related cause. Your money could go to the brilliant scientists who are going to figure out why our kids’ brains are different and then find a cure. Or, maybe it will go toward making it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate against our kids. There are lots of other worthy efforts around autism that also need funding, but those are the two biggies at the moment.

And, my final recommendation on celebrating World Autism Awareness Day and Autism Awareness Month: Educate yourself and others. Understanding is the key to progress here.

Acceptance is a good start - all of our kids (and we, as their parents) deserve to be treated fairly. But the importance of cultivating understanding goes deeper than acceptance. If everyone understood the disorder better, we could have more support for people on the spectrum, more people working on treatments, and more people funding the research that will ultimately lead to its cause and its cure. It can start with you.

Just in case you need a cheat sheet, here are a few key points you might want to share:

• Autism is a neurological disorder that affects every person differently. It’s called a spectrum disorder because of the wide variance in symptoms and severity among affected individuals.

• More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined.

• No one knows what causes autism and there is no proven link between autism and vaccines.

• Children with autism have trouble relating to other people. This can mean everything from being socially awkward to being unable to speak.

• Even though there is no cure for autism, early intervention with individualized therapies has been proven to treat the symptoms of the disorder, helping kids gain many of the skills they need to learn and become functional adults. Some parents would go so far as to say that their children have actually "recovered" from the disorder. For the majority of people with autism, however, it's something they will deal with their entire lives.

That's really just the beginning, but I hope that it gets you (or someone you know) thinking and interested in learning more. In addition to the Autism Speaks site, which has tons of good information, I recommend the book " Ten Things Every Child With Autism Wishes You Knew." I have other recommendations too, but I'll save some of them to last me through the month.

The Upswing

I survived my first "week" at the new job. It was good. Not particularly inspiring or fun, but good in the sense that it wasn't bad and I am earning money. 

I realize that I've been on a bit of a career roller coaster (or experiencing a bit of career schizophrenia) as of late, so the thrill of hearing about my latest "new job" may have lost its luster to some, but I couldn't help noticing how much more excited everyone seemed to be about my bakery job. Granted, I had built that job up in my mind to be full of much more promise than it ever really was, but still...I know it's more uplifting to hear about someone taking risks and following dreams, but there's also something wonderful about, say, suspecting that your car needs transmission work and knowing that you're going to be able to pay for it without wiping out your dwindling savings account. 

I'm really just trying to make myself feel better about the slide back into corporate America. One thing that helps tremendously is knowing that this is the year I will check "take family to Hawaii" off my list of goals. Because really that's what a lot of my travel does (superfluous trips to Vegas excluded), it gives me a sense of accomplishment. I wanted to see it, I saw it. I wanted to have that experience, I had it. Check and check. 

Speaking of travel, I am thrilled to tell you that I am off to San Francisco on Friday for a friend's wedding! I'm even more thrilled to tell you that our plane tickets were free, thanks to the airmiles my husband banked while traveling to and fro for his corporate meetings. Free travel is just the greatest. 

Since I've been to San Francisco before, I can't really count seeing the city as a goal, but last time I was there I was only 19, so this time I'm going to the American home of the Irish coffee, the Buena Vista Cafe, which is sort of like a goal I didn't know I had until it presented itself. "Have greatest Irish Coffee available on U.S. soil. " Soon-to-be check. 

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In autism news, our country is making progress in ensuring fair insurance coverage for children with autism. Nevada is the most recent state whose senate has passed a bill that would cover Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy, one of the most promising treatments for children with autism. Learn more at Autism Votes. (Seriously, go learn more - you might be surprised how soon this information could come in handy).