Autism Life Cycles and Faith Communities
Sandra L. Harris, Ph.D.
People with autism are much like the rest of us. They are male and female, of every age and come in many shapes, sizes and colors. Some are very intelligent and some have intellectual disabilities. Some people have relatively few characteristics while others are profoundly affected by their autism and have many symptoms. They come from every social class, ethnic and racial group, indeed from every identity group including a diversity of religious backgrounds. They do share with one another important challenges that make their lives far more complex than most of us encounter.
There are five disorders on the spectrum of autism. These are Autistic Disorder, Asperger Syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDDNOS), and two rare conditions, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder and Rett’s Disorder. The characteristics tying these individuals together include their difficulties comprehending social interactions and their unusual use of language. Many people on the spectrum also engage in repetitive or stereotyped behaviors. They vary in the severity of these characteristics ranging from some people with Childhood Disintegrative Disorder or Autistic Disorder who may appear oblivious to the feelings or needs of other people, may not speak and are content to flap their fingers or rock for extended periods, to others with a diagnosis of Asperger
“For the family affected by autism, every life cycle event is fraught with potential challenges for the parent of a child on the autism spectrum and every point of the spectrum has its own demands.”
Syndrome or PDD-NOS who are aware of others, capable of some empathy, have complex but not socially attuned speech, and may be distressed by their failure to grasp the social rules, which are self-evident to most of us. These deficits in understanding social relationships, using speech for meaningful communication, and having rigid behavior patterns have an inevitable impact on siblings, parents and extended family.
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Living with Autism… Living with autism and having autism are different. Here are examples why. My son has autism so as he walks briskly tapping his head with each stride, he is unaware that there’s a hole in the grocery bag he’s carrying to the car for me and that he’s dropping food as he goes. Living with it, I only realize the bag has a hole. When hurrying to catch up with him, I notice two men turn and look at my son, then look down at the head of lettuce at their feet and shrug; teens sitting at an outdoor table an arm’s length from him point and laugh; a woman and child in front of a movie theater stop to read aloud the label on the cheese he dropped but don’t bother to stop him. continues on next page
Sponsor Aunt Connie, father Tim Craig and Clinton Craig with Bishop DaCunha at his confirmation.
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A Journey Into Community
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