About the product: One (1) $50 Gift Card to Babies R Us will be awarded to one random participant. In addition, in honor of Autism Week, Gagazine will donate $0.05 (five cents) for every comment received to Autism Speaks.
If you would like to donate to Autism Speaks directly, you may visit here.
If you would like to help us spread the word about this giveaway or about autism in your blog, please feel free to do so. The link to this post is http://gagazine.com/autism-week-50-giveaway/
Are you eligible? You must have a valid email and mailing address.
How can I win? Visit the Autism Speaks website and come back here to comment on one thing you learned about autism. Winner will be randomly selected.
Am I the winner? If you are the winner, your name will be announced in the Winner’s Announcements category on April 14th, 2008. You will be contacted via email to confirm your mailing address in order for us to send you the gift card. You have 3 days to respond to confirm your mailing address. Otherwise, you will forfeit your prize and I will select another winner.
When will this giveaway end? The winner will be announced on Monday, April 14th, 2008 at 9:00 pm PST.
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. Please go here to participate in our next giveaway.
Having a son with autism, I have learned that I am not alone as a parent of an autistic child
I learned alot from that site, one thing that shocked me was that “Autism costs the nation over $90 billion per year, a figure expected to double in the next decade”. Its a huge problem that lots of people have to deal with and my heart goes out to those children and their families. Thanks for bringing attention to it.
I learned that if diagnosed early treatment can be very effective
I had no idea that it affects boys more than girls, or that it had become so common (more common that pediatric cancer?!?). Very interesting website- thanks for sharing all that info!
I have a friend who’s son has autism. I think sometimes people think ” He’s autistic, he don’t know what’s going on” but he is very brite. He actually knows things kids two-three years older than him knows. Everyone should really read up on it and get the facts before making judgements on autistic people.
I learned the red flags for autism and I printed them out for reference.
Boys are much more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls. What about twins? I know of a set where only one has autism.
As the mother of a son with a dual dx of Down syndrome with Autism Spectrum Disorder, I learn from your website that THERE IS HOPE ….
thank you, and bless you and the work you do.
Children with Autism are easily distracted by such simple things.
I had no idea how wide-spread autism is: Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined.
Wow…just WOW…that’s a whole lot more than I thought.
Early intervention can make such a difference!
I learned that autism can be reliably diagnosed at 3 years of age but may also be diagnosed for some at 6 months of age.
That it is so often misdiagnosed- and occurs in more boys than girls.
real nice gift thanks
i didnt realize it affected so many children :(
agreed with all above
I didn’t know that it could sometimes be diagnosed as young as six months!
SOON, A CURE!
Asperger’s Syndrome is different than classic autism in that IQs are normal. people with Asperger’s syndrome can be fixated on one thing. When my cousin’s son who has AS went on a factory tour he fixated on the numbers on the overhead cranes and nothing else. It was exhausting just helping his mom keep him in tow because he is easily distracted and gets lost because he doesn’t focus on faces so follows anyone with his mom’s coat color.
How many people it affects
Though the debate over the role that vaccines play in causing autism grows more heated every day, researchers have still not found a definitive link between the two.
In reading about the early warning signs, I learned that
“No big smiles or other warm, joyful expressions by six months or thereafter” is one of the red flags.
The fact that the autism spectrum affects 1/150 children is astounding; that fact alone thrusted me into reading more about the different forms and the co-morbidity (and go more in depth!)
My six year old granddaughter with Autism is the most beautifull girl in the world.Everything she speaks is truth so everything she says is right from the heart.She does not know a lie or why say one.It just makes her a truly beautifull little girl that I love from the bottom of my heart.My seven other grandchildren I love but Jadis is special.
Thank you for helping people get and stay informed with autism. They have a great program called “AutismCares”. It is “a consortium of organizations including Autism Speaks, that has come together to support individuals with autism and their families during natural disasters and other catastrophic life events. Learn how families get help.” Many families were able to be helped with this during Hurricane Katrina.
Adolescence is when, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, they “may become painfully aware that they are different from their peers,” a realization they may not be fully prepared to face. As a result, they may appear to regress, acting out and exhibiting behaviors, such as hitting or rocking, they may have conquered long ago.
I learned that although autism is such a common disorder, there are ways to help children with autism and we will find more ways by spreading awareness :)
I didn’t know it was more common in boys than in girls.
I learned that there is no single treatment protocol for all children with autism.
I had no idea that Autism affects more children than diabetes, aids and cancer together. It’s so very sad and I feel for the families that have to deal with this.
I have an 8 year old nephew who is Autistic. My 6 year old son sometimes has a hard time understanding why his cousin can’t talk and doesn’t always want to play with him. I found a great book, “Since We’re Friends”, that will be perfect for me to read to him. Thanks for making donations to this worthy cause for each comment posted!
I didn’t know that they could detect autism at such an early age now.
I used to watch a little boy that probably had autism (he hadn’t been officially diagnosed but he had a lot of the symptoms) and he was a sweet boy. Just got a little frustrated sometimes.
Early intervention helps!
I learned how prevalent autism is-1 in 150. I did not know the rate is so high.
Autism can be diagnosed as early as 6 months.
I have Aspergers Syndrome
I was unaware that HYPER seratonin levels were present in persons with autism. The person who decided upon the puzzle piece for a symbol was clever!
“Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.”
i am so glad that autism is getting the rrecognition it deserves more people being made aware will make differences in the childs life
I had no idea that autism is now “more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined”.
Everybody should learn more about autism. I also believe they are from vaccinations. It is sad. The goverment should look into the vaccination theory.
I think the vaccinations should be investigated as well. Maybe they are to blame.
There are no effective means to prevent autism, no fully effective treatments, and no cure.
I had no idea that the signs of autism were so general. That if a baby doesn’t smile by 6 months that it could be a sign. It was an eye opener for me. I don’t really know anyone with autism and it was interesting to learn new information about it.
Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined.
I did not know that it is more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined.
* * One in one hundred fifty children are affected * *
doctors think that kids will “catch up” and for parents to “wait and see”… but when parents see signs in their children they need to see about getting them checked b/c the sooner the diagnosis the better.
What a noble cause! I learned that there is a walk benefitting autism research in my area on Oct. 21st. I’d love to get involved as there is so much to learn and do.
More boys are affected by autism more than girls.