Stories of Hope

Share your inspiring, hopeful story of how autism touched you.

My proud mummy moment

http://youtu.be/t7KwyzB6VRE

My son has autism and was non verbal
I would love for his you tube clip to give hope and inspiration to those newly diagnosed families of children with autism and those on the therapy ride,,, to see Lucas stand and speak so confidently is very inspirational and I hope it gives strength and a smile to those who need it

Anonymous
Brisbane, Australia

My Amazing Little Man ♡♡♡♡

My son who is 5 and just started kindergarten we actually just found out he was on the spectrum Friday September 5th 2014 even though there are family members who have it I never thought he did he was delayed in talking but he did speech therapy and the speech came along at first he couldn't make full sentences but those two eventually started to come along sometimes he still is unable to make full sentences to get his point across but I just thought it was due to his speech problem...but I was so focused on his speech that I never stopped to pay more attention to the other traits of autism that he had such as the tantrums as well or how emotional he gets when he doesn't get something either very sad or very mad the high pitch noises he makes or the way he covers his ear when normal sounds to us are to loud for him I never noticed until the doctor started asking me questions and going through the appointment assessing him now I'm still shocked because I never thought my son was autistic but I love him none the less and he is very bright and his imagination is incredible I am happy though at least now I can get the proper care for him and I know that I am not alone even though I am kinda nervous and scared this is all new to me

Anonymous
Atlanta, GA

NEVER GIVE UP! DON'T LET YOU'RE DISABILITIES GET THE BEST OF YOU!

My name is Noah Rhoades and i am 13 years old. I have Type 1 diabetes, Aspergers, dyspraxia, Sensory Issues, ADHD, and Anxiety/Panic Disorder. I have these disabilities but I don't like calling them disabilities because they may set us back but I believe that they don't disable us from living life to the fullest and enjoying our time on earth. I just want to share a story. One day I went to school and i was having a really bad day. I thought to myself "This day is going to be absolutely TERRIBLE!" i had the mile run that day in gym and i was just about to give up on my 3rd out of 4 laps (about 25 minutes in) when i had passed my class and everyone was finished I saw only 1 face that was annoyed (which was really upsetting) but then my class started cheering me on and it started with about maybe 3 people. But then the whole class one by one, two by two, started cheering me on. I felt so elated when i heard this because i knew at that moment that they weren't annoyed at me but had faith in me. I finished my 4th lap 2 minutes later with a time of about 27:30. The next year I had the mile again and almost every person from my last year class had said to me "You can do this, you did it last year you can do it again!" I then that year finished with a time of 16 minutes! The moral of the story is no matter what the situation is no matter where you are or what you're doing, NEVER GIVE UP!!!! Because there will always be at least one person that will believe in you whether it's your mother all the way to a classmate or co-worker.

Noah Rhoades
Jewett City, CT

Kelsey's Amazing Journey

Kelsey's Amazing Journey

My daughter Kelsey is 10 years old and has been diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) which is on the autism spectrum. I adopted Kelsey, as a special needs child, from a Russian orphanage when she was 14 months old. When I first found her at the orphanage she was sick, starving, weighed less than 14 pounds and was dressed in rags. She has come a long way in 10 years. It has been an amazing life changing journey for both of us.

Kelsey's achievements continue to astound everyone. She is a 4th grade special education student at the local elementary school. She is a member of a regional swim team and a cheerleading show team. She has also taken gymnastics and dance lessons since she was three years old and, in a couple weeks, she will be competing in her first beauty pageant. This summer, she won an achievement award from the National STEM Academy to attend a summer engineering camp. During the past several years, she has raised several thousand dollars to benefit a variety of charities that assist special needs children and their families. Eventually, she wants to start her own charitable foundation that will be able to help children and families who need assistance.

Last week, Kelsey competed in her first swim meet with her team. She swam in the 25 yard freestyle and 25 yard backstroke. She wasn't one of the fastest swimmers but she certainly was one of the most excited. The smile on her face says it all.

Kelsey says one of her goals is to someday swim for Team USA in the Special Olympics World Games. That swim meet was the first step towards that goal. She is a little girl with big dreams! I am proud to be her mother.

Carol Norris
Bonaire, GA

My amazing little man

My amazing little man

Oliver was born at 7ibs healthy, alert and beautiful. This wonderful baby changed my life right from the beginning. He started saying words early on and his crawling was delayed and when it came around to walking he was also late on that milestone and lost some words he used to say as he grew. Me being a first time parent I didn't think to much of it.
As time went on I had noticed some cues that were a little off. How fascinated he was playing with just the wheels on cars and would sit for hours trying to perfectly stack blocks and organize them into color groups and sizes. He had to be textbook on everything he built and would throw tantrums if nothing turned out as he planned. As he got older his babbling stuck and he couldn't communicate what he wanted to say. That was hard on all of us. Oliver would get so frustrated because he knew what he wanted but just couldn't make it out to words. His progress on his communication has been alot better but still not fully there.
My Oliver is turning 5 and he was just recently diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum. The pediatrician he had did not mention anything to us about his delays and that only delayed things longer on his getting diagnosed. My son is so smart, lovable, social, and just an amazing child inside and out. Oliver is polite to everyone he meets. He always says his "please" and "thank you's" and always has a huge smile on his face when he see's new people and always greets them. My Ollie is such a social butterfly. Oliver has his passions, from his collection of hot wheels cars to his Minecraft game. Whenever he gets a new car he is the happiest kid. He amazes me everyday by learning and memorizing things. One thing he wanted to learn was makes and models of cars and he already knows them all. My son Oliver is my everything and I would never change him for the world.

Jessica Stout
Millville, NJ

One Day

One Day

My mother's fallopian tubes were cut and tied before I was born. On that day of September 15, 1983 I came into the world having contracted Spinal Meningitis by swallowing some amniotic fluid. Two weeks following my birth, and after a period of critical condition, I was allowed to go home with a mother who at one point took me for dead. Perpetually had I wished in my past that I did die. My name is David Keosababian and this is my tale of my life with Autism.

I was a quiet boy in elementary. I played with Legos, by myself; leaves, by myself; Construx, by myself; dirt, by myself; even with naught but my sole imagination, by myself. I had friends and even a best friend. But, I was still quiet. Homework was painful, and I did not know why. So, I did not do it. Having failed many courses in high school, I miraculously graduated via a teacher in whom I considered like a mother. In college, I succumbed to deep delusions and saw things that were not real. I created my own "family" who loved me. I wrote them. Failing college miserably, I took to journaling and writing upon my laptop. Writing and writing and writing. I estimate my personal log to be in the vicinity of at least one million words, my writing upon computers notwithstanding. Life was still painful. My counselor had to watch me leave every session and wonder whether or not he would see me again, for I was a danger to myself. I tried killing myself. Admitted twice to two psychiatric wards, it was not until 2007 I chose to live. In ire, I hurled myself into life. Battling my demons, slaying devils and coming upon a slow climb from Hell. I now have a job, friends and family who love me and I them, co-workers who commend me, a published book--The Rudimentum Series: Aeon Eternal--and my knowing that, by the grace of God, I emerged from the darkest abandon to a place of light. I have beaten my Autism. Thank you.

David Keosababian
Whittier, CA

Bryson

I have a beautiful son who is five named Bryson! I knew from the time he was very young that there was something different about him, I did my.best as a parent and got help for him and soon learned he had autism. Watching my child struggle with other children, and his speech amount other things is hard. My child is so smart, so beautiful. He has taught me patience, and to look at life differently. He may have autism, but he is my second chance at life :-) Amber Boles

Amber Boles
Louisville, KY

My Little Bobcat Hunter

My son is normal. I've never questioned that. When he was born he was perfect, and I was a terrified single 19 year old mother. He hit all of his milestones, or so I thought. In hindsight, he never waved or really interacted with people. I just chalked it up to him being shy. I never thought anything was amiss, until a counselor suggested I see a doctor, since his speech wasn't up-to-par. I brushed it off, and just thought that all babies progress at their own rate and he would be fine. Then his 2 year check up came, and his doctor expressed concern about his lack of vocabulary as well and set us up an appointment with a speech specialist. We went in, my daughter just a few months old, and he did the evaluation. At the end, he asked me if I had ever considered autism, and shocked I said no, it hadn't even crossed my mind. That was when he gave me the diagnoses. After the appointment I called my mom and told her the news, and that night started devouring any information I could about autism. Everything I read made perfect sense. Where I had thought the flapping of his arms was a cute little quirk he did when he got excited, it was actually an autism trait. I always thought I just had a very independent and well-behaved little boy. Looking back I see it now-the inability to communicate, the tantrums when he couldn't get me to understand what he wanted, lining up his toy cars, never telling me he loved me even when I said it to him. He was in behavioral therapy and did extremely well, but it ended when we moved out of North Carolina and up to New York. It didn't matter, though, because if I thought he was excelling in therapy, he absolutely exploded when we moved. He is in his 2nd day of kindergarten in a regular classroom and loves school. He pretend plays, has an amazing imagination, and tells me that he loves me on his own.

Brittany
South New Berlin, NY

My Hero Gilbert

My Hero Gilbert

My whole life changed on February 10, 2010 the day i found out i was carrying this precious angel. This is my first child Gilbert he was born November 15, 2010 right at 40 weeks full term baby he crawled on time he walked at 10 months and said his first word at 12 months "mama" he did say a couple other words at 18 months he use to say "lets go" "stop" "ah man". all of a sudden he stop saying all those words, i got concern when he turned 2 yrs so i asked the pediatrician if it was normal for him not to have alot of speech and communication with us and he said yes my family and us still had doubts so we went for a second opinion and changed pediatrics. The new pediatrics recommended him to ECI an OT, yes it did help a little but not as much for him to say a full sentence. When Gilbert turned 3 that's when he saw a phsycologist through the school district and he was diagnosed with Autism my heart broke i cried out of the meeting all the way home i asked myself what did i do wrong I was a single mother with him his father was never around, i went through so many surgeries with him i wanted to give up so bad but i realized my son needs me more than ever now no one was gonna love and care for him the way i did. Gilbert is now almost 4 yrs old he is in his second year in PPCD program he still has not said a full sentence but he is very very smart teachers and pricipal love him. i know the day will come when he finds his voice and speaks i just have to be patient and give him time he also does have a 6 month old little sister that he loves and care for and a father that accepted him as his own and show him the love he never had of a dad.

Lori Flores
Houston, TX

My Christmas Song

I am a 35 year old male called Danny that has an 9 year old boy called Oliver that has Autism. Oliver is such a sweet child and loves everyone and most of his childhood he started his sentences with daddy did you know...... This stuck in my mind for years and I always wanted to write a song for him and I came up with a song in my head called Daddy did you know its Christmas. I am working with a music producer at the minute to produce this song and its coming along really well. I want to also try raise abit of Autism awareness through the song and maybe get it released into the Christmas charts, it would be amazing if I could get some school backing that would be great. I am also trying to involve a quire in the song to give it a really good effect and Christmassy feel. I really don't know where to start with raising awareness hence why I am writing this. Also on the 28th I am doing a reverse bungee to try raise a little money for the charity.

I hope people like what the here and show some support

Danny Hook
Leeds, United Kingdom