I am going to start with Dr. Temple Grandin. Why is she so special you may ask? She is the first person that explained to me what it was like to have ASD. She was diagnosed in the 1950’s when this was considered virtually a death sentence. People did not know how to treat them or what to do. She was blessed with a mom who did not give up.
Dr. Grandin is an adult with autism that can tell us what it feels like. Why they stim, why they have a hard time looking in a person’s eyes while talking to them, what they need. I highly recommend reading her books (Thinking in Pictures, Animals in Translation, Different….not less, The Autistic Brain) , looking her up on the computer and watching the HBO movie about her titled “Temple Grandin” starring Claire Danes. She is a contributing adult, a DOCTOR!! She has a successful career as a livestock-handling equipment designer, one of very few in the world. She is intelligent and makes a huge difference in society.
My next hero is a little newer to the world. Her name is Carly Fleischman. A young lady with ASD. What makes her special, a hero? I am afraid that I can not explain her accomplishments in a way that will do her justice. Carly was diagnosed with autism, oral-motor apraxia and cognitive delay as a child. In other words, she did not develop like her twin. Did not speak or act like a typical child. She would hit herself, appeared mentally deficient. How could anyone tell how smart she was if she could not speak? Well, there are many ways to communicate. Her parents did not give up on her either. Through therapy and including her in the family, she communicated! One day she typed her needs on the computer. That was the day her family realized their daughter was trapped inside of her self. She was able to explain that the reason she kept hitting herself was because she felt like a thousand ants were crawling on her skin. That helped me understand why one of the children I worked with would hit themselves. For them, it served a need.
Where is Carly today? She did go to college and is trying to start a “talk” show! The first non-verbal talk show that she will host. She utilizes a voice app on her tablet. Her first trial interview was with Channing Tatum! It was hilarious and really showed her intelligence and humor. I encourage you to look up Carly on YouTube, Facebook, and her read her book “Carly’s Voice.”
