FoggyRock General Forum

I can totally relate.  Especially after around the age of 5 or so when my son's tantrums didn't seem so typical anymore.  I have found it tremendously helpful to have my son wear some kind of awareness t-shirt, so that anyone looking on would be able to give him the benefit of the doubt.  These days, my 13 year old son still likes to hold my hand in public, which brings alot of strange looks, so it seems as if the looks will continue for quite a while.

I'd like to ask where you guys bought your Autism Awareness t-shirts? That seems like a good idea - maybe not for everyday, but especially when going into new situations.

When my granddaughter was little and we'd get out and go places with her, she would often walk up to strangers and start a conversation (in her own babble language usually), but if strangers tried to talk to her first she would shut down and come stand beside or behind me. Just looked like she was being shy. That's not such a clear-cut issue now that she has two years of school under her belt (Pre-K and Kindergarten).

In the last year or so we have noticed more of reaction to crowds and loud noises. She is used to going along to her sister's TaeKwanDo class, but when we attended the Belt Ceremony there were way more people and it was way noisier and she sat on my lap for most of the evening instead of heading off to the play room as usual.

The night they invited family members to give TaeKwanDo a try out, she watched her mom join her sister in the dojo, and after awhile she joined them. But as soon as the group began doing 'keops' which is a loud shout, she ran back to me and got onto my lap. She went back and forth a couple more times during the class, depending on the noise level in the dojo.

We had wondered whether enrolling her in the Tiny Tigers class would be a good idea, whether she would get much out of the class, apparently we'd have to talk to the instructors about letting her come back to us when the class gets loud. Wonder if they'd let her wear an Autism Awareness t-shirt for class instead of their ATA shirt?

Last edited by Sherry (2008-05-25 20:45:07)

You can get autism awareness t-shirts from the Autism Society of America, and one of our Foggyrock members, Seymoursheep, makes some of her own, which she sells online.  Go to her page and ask her about it.  Or, you could just go to your local t-shirt shop and have them print one for you with your own message...  I find that once people know there's something different about a child, they cut the kid (and parents) some slack.

I agree, Sherry!  That would be a great project to do with the kids!  Thanks for the idea!!!

Interesting development, even a t-shirt isn't going to help with everyone. We have a neighbor who nearly always has grandkids staying with her. One day at the swimming pool her granddaughter asked if Nove'Mber can swim yet, because her sister is "six years old too and she can swim." So I explained that her sister doesn't have Autism but that Nove'Mber does have Autism.

A couple of weeks later the grandmother attended a family therapy session for her grandson - the same therapist we see as it's a small town - and mentioned to the therapist that her grandson had told her that he had seen our family at his office. Thinking this was a good chance to see what impression other people have of our little one, he asked the grandmother what she thought. Well, she said she'd heard me tell her granddaughter that Nove'Mber has Autism, but she doesn't think that's right.

So the therapist asked her to describe what she had seen when our girls have been playing in her yard with her grandkids, and she pretty much went right down the list from the Manual of Diagnostics. I guess she was thinking that Autism is the same thing as a Savant or a Rain Man.

So even putting a t-shirt or a med-alert bracelet isn't going to help when people have the wrong idea about what Autism really is.

Last edited by Sherry (2008-06-21 05:24:27)

I've made up cards to hand out, so I don't always have to explain or talk about my child in front of him. They say his condition and asks them understand. They're business card size. Pray, your heart will tell you what ot say on the cards.

I think I am going to get one of those Autism t-shirts for my son.  When we were out yesterday and he was having a major meltdown- I kept wishing I had one on him to explain the situation!  I don't want people thinking he is just a bad kid.