Jenny McCarthy, Autism and McCain....the Real Story

http://www.usmagazine.com/news/jenny-mccarthy-my-son-is-no-longer-autistic

So much for honest, compassionate concern

Is it possible to be "cured" of autism?

neworleans_lady wrote:

Is it possible to be "cured" of autism?

I don't believe so. But I have heard of great results with diet change such as Jenny describes. Is her son still autistic? Was he truly ever or was it a misdiagnosis? Time will tell.

My son was considered ' cured ' of Autism although in the newer, wider scope of Autism diagnosis I'm sure he'd still be considered high functioning Autistic, if that makes any sense to you but I'd guess Jenny's son would be also. I imagine he hasn't made a complete recovery yet.

There were a few other children in Brent's Autism program that they had success with also and would have been considered ' cured '. Heartbreakingly few but it happened.

If you have read the book Son Rise that child is considered cured and they have had some success with other children also with the program they developed.

I have to say that if my son were small right now I'd feel a great deal of frustration for the widening of the spectrum of Autism. I think when the average person meets someone with whats now considered high functioning Autism it removes thier resolve to find a cure for those on the lower spectrum with a much more severe form of the disease. If someone met my son and were told he was Autistic, they certainly wouldn't feel a need to spend tax dollars for research to cure him. He's fully functional. Brent has not been tested in many years as I don't want him diagnosed. A diagnosis of mental illness can cause a great deal of hinderance in the work force and other areas of social development and I see little positive result in diagnosis right now.

I do have to agree that it is looking more and more like the childhood vaccinations or something delivered to a child in infancy is the cause. My son also had normal social development for the first months of life and suddenly drifted farther and farther away until he was unreachable. With my son its not so cut and dry as vaccinations as my son was given large amounts of steroids, adrenaline and other medications to keep him breathing. There could have been many reasons but it does seem that some children ' heal ' from the chemical damage and others don't.

But let's not skim over this part of Jenny McCarthy's article:

She's even reached out to John McCain - who spoke about the importance of autism awareness during Wednesday's debate - without much success.



"We tried," says McCarthy - who currently labels herself a Democrat. "McCain had come out and said he thinks there's enough evidence between vaccines and autism, so I got on a helicopter [to meet him for] an on-camera interview. By the time I got there, the campaign manager said, 'He's ahead in the polls, and this is too controversial, and he doesn't want to go one way or the next.'"





So, now that he's behind in the polls, it becomes something he wants to talk about????? Hello...................

I understand your interest in what McCain said and did but I think its also important to explore the answer to the Autism question that was opened.
Question: Can ABA Cure Autism?

I've read stories about intensive ABA "recovering" autistic children, but I've also heard that there is, as yet, no cure for autism. Which is true?Answer: The following answer was supplied by researchers at the Lovaas Institute:


SHORT ANSWER
Both are true.

LONG ANSWER
In 2000, Dr. Lovaas wrote a paper entitled “Clarifying Comments on the UCLA Young Autism Project.” In it, he discussed the difference between the use of the word “cure” and “recovered.”
He states, "The term 'cure' implies removal of the original cause of the problem and because the cause of autism is unknown, claiming a cure would certainly be unjustified and unethical. In contrast, it is possible to enable a child with autism to achieve normal functioning without finding a cure for autism, just as it is possible for a physician to recover patients to normal functioning without having found a cure for their illness. Hodgkin’s disease is a case in point."

I think Jenny just saw improvement in her son's interactive skills and is using the word "cure" as in "the seems better." I know with Marc, we have grasped at all the indicators along the way....as some kind of affirmation that we must be doing something right. There is such a sense of hopelessness when someone you love seldoms responds. If I make it to the roundtable discussion on Saturday morning (they are only seating the first 100), I will see what I can find out about "cures"....how others have dealt with and interpreted this.

I'm not sure anyone really knows the truth. Was my son cured . . . did he simply heal and overcome the chemicals in his body . . .did he relearn communication with patience and guidance. . . .did some medication or treatment for his other problems cure him. . . were my prayers simply answered. . . there are no real answers to life's mysteries. All I know for sure is my son made no eye contact, never smiled, cried, laughed or used words or actions for communication until he was 4 and a half years old. He continues to struggle with communications and forming relationships that others take for granted. His first word was ' opportunity ' and his first form of communication was to count to 33. He was capable of counting to about infinity it turned out but I got so excited it distracted him at 33. Who knows the real truth. . . only God.