Have you noticed any blue lights on
your neighbor's porches lately? These lights are part of a campaign
organized by Autism Speaks for the Autism Awareness Month. The main
goal behind this campaign is to educate people about autism. Thisoften misunderstood condition affects 1 in 88 children. This number
is increasing, not because more children have autism but because
people are more aware of this condition and more children are
diagnosed and helped.
Why is it important to know about autism? Autism does not seem to be related to genetics: anyone could
have a child with autism. Parents need to know about this condition
and its symptom to be able to recognize them in their children. You
might think that autism would be easy to recognize, but there are
different forms of autism. A mild autism might be interpreted as
shyness and a child who needs support and supervision will not get
the kind of attention needed if no one is able to recognize the
symptoms.
Educating people is also a way of
fostering acceptance and understanding. There are still a lot of
ignorant reactions from people who see children with autism and
recognize the symptoms as a form of retardation. This kind of
reaction is extremely hurtful for the children and their families.
If there is one thing you should learn
during Autism Awareness Month is that there is nothing wrong with
autistic children. They function differently and you should think of
them a unique individuals, not as children with a medical condition.
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