The Allure Of Water To Those With Autism

You know what scares the hell out of me? Water. My son loves the water. He is never more happy when he is in my fiends' Tom back yard pool, where he can touch the ground and bob up and down. I visited my friend Tom twice last summer and we were both amazed at how long Luc wanted to stay in the water. He couldn't swim, or dogie paddle, but he could walk / use his hands to move around the shallow end, and enjoy the pool and the feeling of buoyancy.

Kids with autism love water. The are drawn to it.
Kids with autism have no fear. They will jump in a fountain, lake, river, deep end not even understanding that this is a dangerous thing to do.

I read about one boy with autism who had a special dog that he was tied to. This boy whenever he saw water, would bolt to it. On a class trip downtown he ended up in a fountain before his teachers could corral him. The boy is a teenager with autism and still had not learned appropriate behavior. The teacher is lucky it was just a fountain.

So now he has this dog who knows to put on the breaks when the teenager starts to bolt.

I'm writing about this because a family member wants to spend some great quality time at a cottage next summer. Right away my mind goes to a family vacation we took 2 summers ago and every moment Luc was heading for the river. I would lean over to hammer in a tent peg, then look up to see Luc 20 meters away and going for the river. I came close to tieing a rope to him. I know - this sound horrible, and I never thought I'd be that kind of father, but I was at my wits end with trying to keep control of him. I didn't tie him up, but I'll tell you this, if I ever hear of another parent putting a leash on their child with autism, what would have been distain, is now understanding.

To heighten my fears, or educate me, depending how you look at it, Autism Canada sent out a story about 2 kids with autism drowning in Florida, separate incidents.

I guess the reason I write this blog is so that the reader can understand that autism is always there. You can't take a vacation from it - you can't just go to the cottage.

I thought today I would write about some of the challenges that I have been facing lately. I only do this because I want people to understand some of the surface issues that parents of children with Autism face. I won't get into issues of heartache and pain - it's too hard.

The F---ing bus. My son Luc gets picked up every day at 7:30am to go to his treatment centre. At first I felt really fortunate that the school he goes to (a regular Catholic School) would arrange busing to his treatment centre. But, after some contemplation, I thought that fair is fair. Lots of kids get bussed all over this city, why should Luc be any different. The problem is this:

Luc gets picked up at 7:30 but can't arrive at school until 8:45. So multiple kids get on and off the bus while Luc sits there for an hour and a quarter. He can't talk to so he can't talk to the other kids. Something he wouldn't likely do anyway because of his condition. I asked his school principle to look into the situation, and they revised the bus schedule. So now he's getting picked up at 7:50. So in an ideal world he would be on from 7:50 to 8:45. 55 minutes to do a 20 minute drive I think is fair enough. Only thing is - he is now getting to treatment at 9:01. So the trip is still as long, and he is late every day. I can't begin to tell you how valuable the time in therapy is, so to lose 1 1/4 hour a week is really a bad thing. I'll try the school again, but I doubt anything will happen. I asked the bus driver if she knows of any kid that is 0n the bus for more then an hour and she said she did - Luc. I'll likely have to drive him everyday and then show up late for work everyday. This is just one small challenge that we face.

The F----ing B12 shot.

OK I admit it - I'm a coward. I just can't bring myself to learn how to give Luc a shot in the ass twice a week. Luc's blood is full of chemicals. Part of the detox process is giving him a B12 shot - so twice a week my wife puts cream on a little spot under a band-aid to num him up and 45 minutes later, she sticks him with a needle.

At first we did it while he was sleeping. I was describing the process to my friend Mark Brown who had this to say:

So let me get this straight - you go into his room in the middle of the night with flashlights and you pull down his paints and give him an injection!! Could you make it any more scary for the little guy? Why don't you wear ski masks while your at it!

Anyway - I can honestly say I take part in every aspect of his therapy except for the dam shot. I don't know why I can't get over this block. I digress.

The shots are expensive and not covered by OHIP or my drug plan. I spend about $600 a month on pills, oils, speech therapy, shots and powders. Not that there is any cost I wouldn't pay - it just wears you down sometime.

Enough venting. I like to think about what my son can do, not what he can't. He has been way more verbal lately and he seems to be understanding better. He is going to the toilet on his own, and is a constant source of happiness for me.

Hey Everyone - Big News - The PSA is finished and posted here

http://sandysaysit.yolasite.com/

It was tougher to get done then I thought. People don't seem to work as fast when you're not paying them. Hmmmmmmmm.

Anyway the experience has been great - everyone I asked for help said yes right away and I think Team Luc did a great job. What I really like was the attitude by people that know how difficult things have been. Most people that support us, can't really help us. There was awhile there that even those that wanted to help, say, babysit for a night so Lucie and I could take a break. The thought was always nice, but for the longest time Luc was still in diapers. And we felt we couldn't really ask a friend to change the diaper of a 5 year old.

As a side note: Luc is now toilet trained - so if you wanna babysit give me a shout!!

Getting back to the PSA - the process also included several members of the board for Autism Canada. They had difficulty understanding how radio scripts are written. Some felt that I've painted a picture of complete despair. On a positive note -I did get this feed back from one of them:

I am sure you are over the top busy right now, so I will write out my thoughts about the PSA when I first heard it.

it serves to bring public awareness to the number of children affected -- very high.

tells a story that is very common in autism -- a story that matches my own

it serves as an awareness tool to shed light on behaviors that might otherwise be dismissed resulting in later diagnosis.

It is difficult to attach a diagnosis/problem, for an unaware mother/family, to what seems an innocent play pattern -- no one wants to see a down side to a normal cute two year old.

So , the above is what I heard in the message -- which one doesn't matter to me -- if that is the objective then I think you have achieved it -- however, if it is Autism Canada's mission to always give hope, I don't see it; however, I don't think that is what you set out to do in this PSA. I think Autism Canada might want to address the hope side in a second PSA -- I am not sure one could do it justice rolled into one???

_____________________________________________________________________

I liked the above because it speaks highly of the things I did cover, and brings up valid points of things that have been left out.

My next move is to get this on air in several markets. Anyone that has 2 hours that can call radio stations and get contact info would be a great help.

Thanks for reading my Blog - feel free to comment - if this site will allow it.

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for checking out my blog - and guess what - my followers have doubled - Thanks Nat.

So after a conference call with the execs at Autism Canada here is the final PSA radio spot that has gone into production.

I could use a little help. Someone a little media savvy would be great. I have my eye on a few of you, but it would be cooling if you volunteered.

Anyhoo - read the spot and please comment to

alexstephensmedia@hotmail.com

thanks

_______________________________________________________________
Autism Canada Foundation
PSA

(This spot should be voiced by a women - the mother. The voice should move from complete happiness to total devastation – the diagnosis and on-set of Autism can be quick and devastating.)
_______________________________________________________________
10 fingers and 10 toes… the perfect baby.
And his name is Adam.
His first year filled with the growth and discoveries that every healthy baby should know.
His second year, Adam became isolated and disengaged. He seemed completely disconnected from us
He became obsessed with spinning the wheels on his cars and lining up toys.
(announcer)
This can be the tragic onset of autism
Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is now being diagnosed in conservatively 1 in 150 children in Canada .
Find out more at autismcanada.org

_________________________________________________________________

I sent to the TEAM LUC producer. He was more then happy to help out once he heard my story and how important the cause is.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for following me through this journey of volunteerism. Strangely, my blog says I have only one follower, but I know I have more because my Iphone says so - and if the Iphone says it, it must be true. But if it is true - BIG SHOUT OUT TO ELENA - YOUR AWESOME.

So, the idea for the PSA script was to A, show how autism isn't something that your are necessarily born with, or is apparent right away. B, paint a picture of what the first signs are and speak the massive numbers of people and families that are affected by this disorder. And C - (and you can't see this in the script, but once it's voiced you'll hear the devastation in the mothers voice) - C - show how devastating it is to a family when they are slowly losing their son. Trust someone who knows, the affects are crippling, so you can give in, or you can fight. Guess which way my family choose to go.



Here is the script writen by the Team Luc Copy Writer - I don't know if he want's to be identified yet - so I'm keeping it on the low down - er ah I mean down low.



Autism Canada Foundation
PSA
10 fingers and 10 toes… the perfect baby.

And his name is Andrew.

His first year filled with the growth and discoveries that every healthy baby should know.

His second year, Andrew became isolated and stimulated by nothing…

Unstirred by even the mention of his own name or the presence of family.

This can be the tragic onset of autism.

Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is now being diagnosed in conservatively 1 in 150 children in Canada .

Find out more at autismcanada.org

Your comments are always welcome - and if you want to help let me know - I need people that can make calls to radio stations and ask who is the PSA person - I know you can do that - right?

Big News - I'm working with Autism Canada in a marketing capacity. My first duty is to get a PSA campaign going for October, Autism Awareness Month. I'm honoured that they have trusted me with such an important task. So far this is what I have

Production:

Copy writer - radio
Producer - radio
Digital Artist - print

Media

Commitment from people who work at the following media to look in to / ensure the PSA gets broadcast / published

Flow 93.5 - 75% that the psa will get a campaign
Classical 93.5 - 75%
The Toronto Star 50%
CFRB - -75%
EZRock - 75%
Vigin - 50%

This is my first week doing this, so I'm pretty happy with the progress thus far.

What I need is more help from people in the feild. I plan on calling my contacts in who work in both outdoor (digital) and TV. My goal is to show Autism Canada that I can get this task done better then anyone.

This week my goal is to have the radio spot written and approved and secure 5 more commetments for airtime.

I also want to approach a few people in the media buying community to use their influence to get this PSA distributed widly.

If anyone wants to help just email me

alexstephensmedia@hotmail.com

Suki Japanese Is The Best Sushi In Toronto

I just had lunch with Jill. A nice girl in my office. We've been passing each other in the halls for the last year and a half and recently started joking about buying each other lunch. So today we finally took the plunge and went to Suki Japanese. It was awesome. I've been there lots of times before. Usually I'd go alone and read the paper. I guess I looked pathetic because the staff would always give me free sushi or a free desert.

Anyway, we went today and were not disappointed. I ordered a Combo A and a Sushi pizza to start. The service was fast and the sushi was great. The over-all comment is that the fish and rice taste unbelievably fresh. They are located at 48 St Clair Ave East - try it