What do you think about Jenny McCarthy's view about autism?

Question

I did not see this, this is second hand from my friend. Apparently on Oprah today Jenny McCarthy was on saying how autistic children don't have disabilities but instead are more "special" and are the next evolution in our human race. Something about "indigo or crystal" children? Are any of you familiar with this "theory" of hers and what do you think?

Answer 1

I think that it is her view and that she is entitled to it. I feel though that she thinks this also because her child is autistic. She does not want to see her child as one with disabilities just as any parent wouldn't either.

Answer 2

I think she is ashamed of her child and is trying to use him as a way of publicity for an invention of her feeble little mind like the indigo children or next child of evolution. I have an autistic 15 year old son whom I love dearly and who almost died of failure to thrive at birth. The only thing I agree with her on is that it takes a major event in the body to activate autism in a genetically predisposed child. And in our case there are 2 confirmed cases of autism besides our sons on his fathers side. This is a neurological and developmental disability and not the next evolution of people. She needs to get back into her bikini and shoot more magazine covers because she is good at this, she does'nt know anything about autism in my book, because she obviously pays people to care for her son obviously she does'nt

Hope my opinion helps

Answer 3

I am an individual with Autism and ok I do not believe in Evolution, I believe in Creation, so i'd have to scratch off that Evolution remark there from her.

I will point out though that I have managed to do all sorts of things, such as finding family tree information online, tracking a couple of distant relatives, i've recorded and copyrighted songs, i've appeared in a music video and well the list can go on.

Answer 4

As a parent of a child with autism that recovered (and I saw the show). She did not mention "indigo or crystal" - she recovered her child the same way the rest of us have. Diet, Therapy, Hard work, faith and love.

Some children will recover if treated early and treated aggressively. Lets see, I had a team of 8 therapists in my house round the clock when he was 20 months old. We didn't let up for 2 years.

More importantly, as Holly said in the show, try not refer to the child as  an "autistic child", would you refer to someone as the "cancered woman"? The child is a child first, the autism is secondary....

Answer 5

I completely agree with Jenny.  You'll see from the answers below that society is resistant to change . . . and change is what will save our children.  Once you understand how to educate the autistic child, they blossom.  Unfortunately, the public school system is not prepared to do this (not from lack of caring but lack of funding) . .  . My husband and I sold our home to pay for alternative therapy for our son and the results have been dramatic.

Answer 6

i dont believe in evolution in the first place and since my little brother has autism i know for a fact that there are many different ways of autism occuring including genetics both of my adorable little cousins have it too and i dont believe they are indigo and crystal children she shouldnt blame her childs autism on anyone not loving her one look at her b***s and guys drool i mean come on if she is going to give me a valid opinion she needs to give me something more than some kind of flower child for the next millinium she has about as much intelligence as baby calf and cows are not very smart so i think you get my picture i love my brother and my cousins and i would never even consider them to be any different than a human being like she apparently does and to the lady who agrees with her you are just as cuckoo bananas as she is

Answer 7

If you agree with Jenny or not,the fact she was on Oprah,bringing attention to autism is a good thing.I didn't get the sense Holly  really wanted to be there,I think Jenny talked her into it.The more attention autism gets,the more likely we are to find the true cause and therefor cure.Although,I do think we will find there is not ONE cause for autism.

I am concerned,people who don't know,will think their child has to have seizures to be autistic.I know my son didn't.

Answer 8

Being a mother of an autistic child the biggest problem I had with the interview was blaming autism on MMR vaccine. I do not believe that autism is caused by the MMR shot. My son was diagnosed with Autism before he received his MMR shot. He has had the shot since he was evaluated and diagnosed with Autism, but there has been no change in his condition at all because of the shot. Not saying that in some cases it may be the cause but it certainly don't apply to all cases. I think it's ridicolous for her to say that "one size doesn't fit all" and yet insist that autism is caused by MMR's. Isn't that contradicting yourself? I feel that some people are looking for a reason why their child has it but I don't feel that blaming it totally on MMR's is correct. I think it's a "excuse"  that they can give as to why their child has it. Another thing that bugs with the MMR's is they talk about how the mercury could be the factor in the vaccine, what about all the mothers that ate fish with high levels of mercury during their pregnancy, couldn't that be a factor too? I don't feel there is a "one size fits all" when it comes to determing the cause of autism. Each person is different and like with other diseases, there can be more than one contributing factor.

I don't think it's right to compare her and the other ladies experience with autism to those of us with regular lives. Their lifestyles are much more different then us regular folks. The have the money to receive any resources they need for thier child unlike the rest of us.

One I do agree with is educate, educate. With autism on the rise of 10-17 % each year is is expected that it will climb from 1 in every 150 births in 2007 to 1 in every 9-10 births in 2015.

It makes me wonder when will people educate themselves on autism. The saying goes the childern hold the key to the future..then we as a society need to accept autism as a a reality because it is one and need to help these childern as much as we can. It's just a matter of time before it affects every birth..then maybe our society will care.

Answer 9

I saw her interview today and as I was watching it I groaned. She is a star with an infinite amount of money and an infinite amount of time. She does not exist in the real world. I work with teenagers on the spectrum everyday. I feel that they need to be respected and loved for who they are, not for the child who remains "trapped within". There is not a fully functioning, happy-go-lucky, freckle-faced typical child trapped within the mind of the child with autism.

I have a problem with the description of a child with autism as "trapped within themselves". It's almost as if your blaming them. Holly Robinson Peete was talking about "people first Language" and yet they talk about their children as "being behind a wall, or "stuck inside themselves", "down a well,....whatever. They spoke about "pulling their child outside of the wall". It makes it sound as if children with autism are mindfully resisting love, and family. That they are actively resisting our help. They are not. We're talking about children with a developmental disability. We are not at war with children with autism. Why use such aggressive language?

I had trouble with her naming vaccines as the cause of her son's autism. There is a lot of research out there that says Autism occurs after a trigger event for people who are genetically predisposed. Her son had a massive seizure. Could that have been his trigger event? Also, later in the interview she talks about ignoring sign of autism earlier in her son's life. Well, if he had signs before he received his MMR vaccine than you can't turn around and say it's the vaccines that caused it. I have a problem when well known people talk about subjects they know little about. Yes, she knows about autism, but your "Mommy Instincts" are not good  enough. Especially when you are talking to millions of Americans who are likely to listen to you. Measles. Mumps, and Rubella, killed millions of children. I think we, as affluent Americans, forget that.

I have heard of this theory of Indigo children. Umm.... all I have to say is, who wouldn't classify their child as smart, loving, and intuitive.

With all due respect, I think Jenny McCarthy needs to go back to what she does best.....bikini shots on men's magazine covers.