Nov 13, 2018, Minneapolis Star Tribune: New videos raise autism awareness in diverse Minnesota communities http://www.startribune.com/new-videos-raise-autism-awareness-in-diverse-minnesota-communities/500390771/
Getting young kids tested for autism as soon as they start showing classic signs of the disorder can be vital for long-term development and readiness for school. But getting that message out to parents in all of Minnesota’s diverse communities has been a struggle.
VIDEO: Sheletta and Shawn Brundidge of Cottage Grove talk about recognizing the signs that they needed to get their young children tested for autism spectrum disorders, excerpted from one of several new videos on the state Human Services Department’s YouTube channel intended to raise awareness about the importance of early diagnosis.
Minnesota mom Sheletta Brundidge, a longtime media personality in the Twin Cities, is hoping a new series of videos funded by the state Human Services Department and produced with the U of M’s Institute on Community Integration can help to change that. …
Kids with undiagnosed autism spectrum disorders may end up with communication problems in class that lead to frustration, acting out, fighting and an inability to learn at the same pace as peers. Sometimes whole grades must be repeated, Brundidge said. On other hand, kids who are diagnosed earlier can enroll in therapy and appropriate programs for kids with special needs.
It's not an abstract issue for Brundidge -- she has three children who are diagnosed with conditions on the autism spectrum, including two who are in school. She says the fact that she got them tested before they were 2 has allowed them to get the early help they needed; today both are in normal classrooms with little to no extra support.
There are many red flags for autism that parents can watch for early in life,…
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Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
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