What issues does your special needs loved one have in life (ex: w/ mental disabilities, autism, etc.)? Explain

Question

There are people w/ disabilities, including mental disabilities, autism, schizophrenia, and other related disabilities / disorders. Let me tell you something about autistic human beings. Low functioning autistics have no language skills and cannot survive independently by themselvles. High functioning autistics are often successful, highly intelligent (according to their schools), and even talented, but they can have issues in life: they can be unemotional, frequently say inappropriate things, they can be literal-minded, they can get fixated on minor detail, they can get agitated when their routine gets altered and they can be extremely uncooperative when anything or anyone gets in the way of them doing what they want. They can even be highly sensitive, and have difficulty relating to other people / human emotions. If you have a loved one who is a special needs person, tell me what you know about that friend / loved one (brother, son, cousin, uncle, etc.).

Answer 1

My friend has an autistic four year old. He is considered "severe" in that he has not uttered a meaningful word, except a form of "Ma Ma," ever in his life. He can figure things out, like opening things up and he can lead people to what he wants. For awhile he pinched people severely to express his anger, though by using behavior analytic techniques, we got rid of that.

He is a very difficult child to have around because he constantly changes activities and has tantrums. For instance, if you go to the store a different way, he will scream and scream. He also hates going to the store and once inside will scream his lungs out.

His mother knows that she reinforces a lot of the behavior, but some of it just seems to be to get his way. Endlessly patient, she still gets deeply stressed. She feels isolated and alone because she lives in a small town with few other parents to talk with. Her husband is gone all day and she is stuck with two little kids. When she takes him to the park, he often attacks other children and the parents may understand, but it is too much to take, so they don't want him around.

He does show affection to his mother and father on occasion, but bullies his younger brother. He is beautiful to look at, with auburn hair cut in a bowl style and dimples on each cheek and big brown eyes. I can see the heartbreak in his mother's eyes when she looks at him.

Still she fights on for her son, making sure the school is doing the right thing and bringing in private speech people,  though her income is very limited. She is such a brave and loving Mom.

Answer 2

My 12 YO son is a stroke survivor,he had a stroke when he was 6 weeks old,he was intubated wrong. He is 75% brain damaged to the left side,25 % to the right side,he can hear,not talk,he uses American Sign LAnguage(ASL). Thor also has scoliosis,Cerebal Palsey and wears braces for both. Five years ago he was totally wheel chair dependent,today he rides a 2 wheeled  bike with no training wheels. My husband  and I love him dearly,we have expections for him we don't take no c**p " cuz  he is special". In school he is in a multi handicapped classroom,one of 8 students( the max allowed in our state),he gets homework daily,has classroom chores  and  helps around the home,Robin

Answer 3

I will try to be brief.

My daughter (24) needs total support to keep her safe and to provide her with the necessities of life.

Also I need my daughter she is a joy to have around and gives me more than I give her.

Answer 4

There is little support when they reach adulthood. They remain very vulnerable to all people in society,good or bad. They are possibly more excluded in society than at any other times in their life, but hey, they were given a part once in a nativity play, so I guess they shouldn't complain!

Answer 5

One of my children has autism. She can be the most funny, loving and interesting people I have ever met. At other times she can be extremely violent, self centred, awkward and withdrawn. She is also a maths genius but yet can't go anywhere on her own. She worries about everything and gets really upset if her routine isn't adhered to. She has obsessions about people and objects. She also has a totally different outlook on life to anyone I have ever met. I have learnt so much from her!

Answer 6

i think my son has sensory integration problems, maybe high functioning autistsm. he is 19 now and i only recently began to research this.  as a baby he skipped the crawling stage. he was hyperactive always running away, bumping into & breaking things, he did not like us to hold or hug him. slapped himself in the face when he wanted something and i could not figure out what or i didn't get it fast enough.

he played extreme sports & would do well one day but not the next. he was always hurting himself or someone else.(broke his arm 3 times, bloodied his friend's nose several times playing rough). he did well in school and was active socially - we gave him lots of opportunities with play groups, sports, indian guides, etc. we though he was just a rowdy boy & never thought anything of it then. but he would get so upset over the smallest things.

in his preteens we moved from our home/friends to houston. this was hard on all of us and he was especially sad & angry & began punching holes in walls & took 4 - 6 showers a day. he also chewed things - metal paper clips, pen tops, etc.  i took him to dr.& was dx'd as bipolar I & was prescribed antidepressants and sleeping meds. when we was 16 his sister died & he coped by using cocaine. since rehab 3 yrs. ago he has not relapsed. his senior year was tumultuous as he skipped school a lot, he barely graduated. he stopped taking his meds during that year.

most of his friends went off to college except him & he felt he was different and not capable of handling it. i would have to agree & after the drug addiction we recommended jr. college instead. he went for a couple of months but dropped out because he could not concentrate or remember things. he said the antidepressants he had taken from age 12 to 17 made him stupid. his memory does seem to be severly affected.

after dropping out of jr.college he just wanted to hang around the house playing video games & going fishing. when i would not allow this we had a falling out. he got an apartment & a job (8 months ago). he is now holding the job and paying his rent (we are helping him a little since he doesn't make much). but his level of stress is so high all the time it's hard to imagine how anyone can function at that level for long. he said he thinks years will be taken off of his life due to the stress he feels constantly. he needs a lot of emotional support from us (mom & dad).

i told him life does not have to be so stressful & asked him to consider getting back on rx's but he said it really didn't help so he won't go.  he says "i am what i am".  but he can hardly cope with noise, crowds, lights & when he can't avoid them he seems to have a melt down. it seems he is becoming less social as a result of this overstimulation. perhaps this is a good thing as it helps him to cope.  he gets very angry at people while driving, etc. & flips them the bird, etc.  he also dwells on past situations that made him angry & he goes on & on about it & gets himself all over again.  

i am worried about his future. my daughter & i are constantly praying for his healing as we know God can perform miracles. we are also looking into getting some natural lithium & some amino acid supplements for him but other than this it seems there's not much available to help someone like this. this is the story of our loved one's struggle with disability.

Answer 7

I do have a niece that is autistic and wasn't diagnosed until she was about 3 years old, but she is a very sweet girl. She can't carry on a conversation with you but does understand everything that you tell her.  She mainly repeats things that you say or things in her life that means something to her. She hates loud noise (fire crackers) and doesn't like for you to hug her. Who knows every autistic person is different because of the different levels, but she does know right from wrong and will correct her own self or tell you she's done or said something wrong.  She is really fun to be around and is an angle in disguise, we consider her a true blessing. It's truly a miracle to watch her learn more & more everyday.  Well that has been my experience with an autistic person.