April is Autism Awareness Month

We woke a couple of mornings ago at 3 am to Chase having a blood sugar of well over 500. His tossing and turning woke us and made us take action. After some insulin and something to drink he soundly fell back to sleep. Lucky kid; I was awake for another 2 hours.

To beat my insomnia, I decided to turn on the early, early, early morning news and caught a segment on autism. April is Autism Awareness Month and Good Morning America spotlighted a film called "Autism Everyday". It is a very powerful film on a mysterious disorder. I encourage everyone to learn more about autism and how it affects families.

After seeing the video, a 3 am blood check will never be the same again.

Here is an overview of autism from the Autism Speaks website:

"Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that typically lasts throughout a person's lifetime. It is part of a group of disorders known as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. It occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. Autism impairs a person's ability to communicate and relate to others. It is also associated with rigid routines and repetitive behaviors, such as obsessively arranging objects or following very specific routines. Symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe."

Autism Every Day (scroll down to the bottom of the page to view 13 minutes of the film)

http://www.autismspeaks.org/index.php