News and Events
The Spectrum is Wide Enough for All of Us.
My 24-year-old son, John, is the face of severe autism. He has very limited language. He can’t read or write. He doesn’t text his friends, make phone calls, or understand danger. He can’t tell me if he’s in pain, or if someone is being unkind or hurting him. John requires 24/7 supervision and lifelong care.
A Place at the Table
"I didn’t know it at the time, but the eyes of Senator’s aide, like mine, were filled with tears during the entirety of my desperate entreaty...." Read more of a mother’s trip to Washington with NCSA-NJ to advocate for her twenty-two-year-old profoundly autistic son Justin, who would no longer have a day program to attend if drastic cuts are made to Medicaid.
Our Children Need A Village
Follow the 30-year journey of a true OG severe autism advocates and her family’s quest for answers, acceptance and to make a difference. What’s gotten better, worse and just stayed the same over a generation.
What Acceptance Means To My Severe Autism Family
We had wonderful encounters with Josh Groban, Angelique Kidjo, and Barbara Cook, all of whom made my family feel accepted.
Sadly, that is has not always been what we experience.
Acceptance for Our Son David
Our son David is 32 years old and he has Severe Autism, an Anxiety Disorder, OCD, PTSD subsequent to abuse in a former group home and very Severe PICA. He has had 5 intestinal blockages requiring hospitalization and three surgeries.
Acceptance Means Feeling Our Pain
Severe autism makes life a struggle. It is not just “different” to be unable to ask for a drink of water when you are thirsty, ask for help when you are in pain or do the things you love to do.
My Twin Boys With Severe Autism
Sometimes severe autism looks like this. I wake each day with a knot in my stomach hoping for a good day but ready to deal with what the day brings
Acceptance Means Freedom From Fear
We see this too often. We need laws that protect our community, training and supervision that prevents abuse and enforcement that punishes it. And a society that accepts our children, but NEVER accepts their abuse.
That Moment? That Was True Acceptance.
John won the final Bingo game of the night—with a little help from the young man next to him who read his numbers aloud. Everyone clapped.
For Severe Autism Acceptance Means Dignity and Respect
My son, for all his oddness, is a human being with all the rights and privileges of any other human. Dignity and respect. Please don't talk to my son like he is a toddler. He is an adult man.
Acceptance Requires Pharmacological Research
Over 800 new drugs approved since 2009. Zero for autism. Not everyone with autism needs or wants medication to help them. But not everyone with autism has severe autism.
Acceptance Means Fair Funding For Severe Autism Research
About 27% of people with autism have severe forms, but only 6% of research funding focused on issues facing the severe autism community. That’s not acceptance
True Acceptance
True acceptance should be unconditional, especially within special education, day programs, vocational, and residential.
Autism —Of All Kinds— Acceptance Month
Celebrities, politicians and business leaders with autism have made a lot of progress towards gaining acceptance. At the same time, our community has suffered.,