Last year for Autism Awareness Month I did 30 Days of Snapshots, Inspired by This Quote from a fellow Momma Blogger…
“To me, awareness is a picture. It’s a montage of snapshots and video clips from the small moments that make up the life of a person with autism. Littered within this media are the big and small moments; the moments that melt your heart and those that test your resolve; the moments that capture the ordinary and those that frame the extraordinary. They’re the snippets of video that you proudly post on YouTube for the world to see, and those that you preview through the view finder on your camera and ultimately decide to delete because they didn’t quite catch your child at their best.
To be aware of autism one must have that complete picture, because awareness is the sum total of these images.”(From red shoes, Autism Blues)
I LOVE the concept of looking at Autism in this light. Those who know me, know I NEVER ( well almost never) go anywhere without my Camera. It is always ready to capture those moments. If You would like to go Back and see the posts from Last April, They are all Linked down the right hand side under the Title: Autism Awareness 30 Days of snapshots. I will be doing this again this year as well, so lets begin Our Journey shall we?
This year the CDC released “New” Autism statistics…..
Data & Statistics
Prevalence
- About 1 in 88 children has been identified with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) according to estimates from CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network. [Read article]
- ASDs are reported to occur in all racial, ethinic, and socioeconomic groups. [Read article]
- ASDs are almost 5 times more common among boys (1 in 54) than among girls (1 in 252). [Read article]
- Studies in Asia, Europe, and North America have identified individuals with an ASD with an average prevalence of about 1%. A recent study in South Korea reported a prevalence of 2.6%. [Data table
] - About 1 in 6 children in the U.S. had a developmental disability in 2006-2008, ranging from mild disabilities such as speech and language impairments to serious developmental disabilities, such as intellectual disabilities, cerebral palsy, and autism. [Read article]
*Source: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html
1 in 88
1 in 54
1 in 252
1%
2.6%
1 in 6…
staggering Numbers, but what I want you to know is this…. These are more than just numbers. They are PEOPLE. and behind each child, there is a family…loving them, guiding them, fighting for them at every twist and turn. ( see my Post 1 in 88…not just numbers, PEOPLE ). This year we confirmed that we have not one, but two children on the spectrum….
Although April is Autism Awareness Month, our families live with autism EVERY day….
Autism…Different but NOT less…
Miracle League…Because EVERY child deserves a chance to play Baseball….
♥
This year, like last year as you join me on this 30 days of snapshots journey I hope you will see that…
Autism is not a Label ( Those go on soup cans) but a Diagnosis….
The words “Your child has Autism” is NOT the end of the world, but an open door to look at life in a different perspective, to take things at a slower pace, to cherish the simple things…
That the child in the store kicking and screaming may not be just a “Spoiled brat”, but may in fact be in pain due to sensory overload….
that the frazzled parent trying to calm said child may need a helping hand, and certainly does NOT need you to stop and stare, give dirty looks, or make snide comments like “Can’t you control your child?” or “you should have left that brat at home” ( and the list goes on…)…
April is Autism Awareness month….
what can YOU do to reach out and spread the word….
to help a family walking this journey…
to educate yourself…
Remember people on the autism spectrum do not need to be “Fixed”. They are NOT broken, and do not need to be forced to fit into society’s idea of how we should act, talk, think, look, ect….
They need acceptance, compassion, and understanding…
not judgement, criticism, and prejudice.
♥
Footprints in Time 
It was pretty shocking when the CDC released their report last week showing that American children being diagnosed with Autism has risen 78% in just ten years. Thanks for your webblog and this post.
Pingback: Autism Awareness~30 Days of Snapshots 2012: Day 3 « Footprints in Time
You can definitely see your skills within the paintings you write. The world hopes for more passionate writers like you who aren’t afraid to mention how they believe. All the time go after your heart.