Jamaica Autism Support Association

Mothers

Mon, 14 May 2012 17:53:13 +0000

Trust everyone had a great mother’s day yesterday.

May you all have a great week.

Sharing some links

Fri, 04 May 2012 21:01:56 +0000

Experimental drug reduces autism symptoms in mice

Autism affects one out of every 88 American children and while there are available treatments for early intervention, there is no cure. A new government-funded study has found an experimental treatment is effective at reversing symptoms of autism in mice.

Click on the link to read more:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57422113-10391704/experimental-drug-reduces-autism-symptoms-in-mice-govt-study-shows/

Six-year-old with autism proves to be a true ‘Piano Man’

Billy Joel may have met his match in Ethan, an autistic 6-year-old piano savant, whose take on the rocker’s hit, “Piano Man,” is so distinct, the only stray from the original seems to be a missing harmonica lament. His remarkable cover of Joel’s music is only the latest in a series of acoustic renditions the young boy has mastered, from Beethoven to James Taylor, The Eagles and Coldplay.

Click on the link to read more:

http://todayentertainment.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/27/11429640-six-year-old-with-autism-proves-to-be-a-true-piano-man#.T51SUWOhgi4.facebook

Autism on the rise… support services under pressure

MAUREEN SAMMS-VAUGHAN, professor of child health, child development and child behaviour at the University of the West Indies (UWI), has said the rapid rate of increase in the number of children with autism is continuing to overwhelm support services as the nation seeks to come to grips with the troublesome medical condition.

Click on the link to read more: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120427/news/news4.html#.T5qnTgmtn44.facebook

Parent Training’ May Help Kids With Autism Behave Better

Children with autism often display challenging behaviors, but new research suggests that parents can learn to better handle tantrums and aggression, which may improve their child’s overall functioning.

Click on the link to read more: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_122494.html#.T5gDwP2YaKM.facebook

Video: Dr. Sarita Freedman discusses disclosing autism to others

When do you tell a child about their autism? When do you tell the family? What about friends? And teachers?

And if you’re a recently diagnosed adult, what do you do? Do you share that information with friends? What about the people at work? Disclosure is a HUGE issue.

Click on the link to see the video: http://www.autismsupportnetwork.com/news/video-dr-sarita-freedman-discusses-disclosing-autism-others-092828922

How My Son Was Humiliated and Verbally Tormented by His Classroom Staff

On the morning of Friday, February 17, 2012, I wired my son and sent him to school. That night, when I listened to the audio my life changed forever. I heard my son being bullied by the staff in his class.

Click on the link to read more: http://www.hnva.net/teacherbully/

Autism Raised Up This Sunday

Different renditions of this wonderful hymn by persons on the Autism Spectrum.

Click on the link to watch: http://thautcast.com/drupal5/content/autism-raised-sunday

Have a great weekend!

Special Olympics Jamaica – May 25

Fri, 04 May 2012 20:30:48 +0000

A little change

Fri, 04 May 2012 18:28:44 +0000

As some of you may know we had a virus on the site which had to be fixed.

Well it has been removed and we now have a new look for our site

April is Autism Awareness Month and as usual we had a spectacular month. We are very happy to have the support of the Digicel Jamaica Foundation. They were a great help in spreading autism awareness throughout the month.

This year we joined Autism Speak initiative to Light it Up Blue for Autism on World Autism Awareness Day which is April 2 as well as through out the month.

Some business entities that Lit it up Blue for Autism were Digicel ( their digital board), Azmart, UWI’s Philip Sherlock Centre, Subway Jamaica, Emancipation Park and many of our JASA members

click here for more pictures.

Our Balloon Release this year on Sunday, April 1 was as usual a pore raising event. The skies above the Emancipation

Park were filled with Green, Yellow , Black and Blue. Beautiful.

(C)2011 {Wayne M. Chin}, all rights reserved

Click here for all the beautiful pictures of the release. Thanks to Halthea Lattie and Wayne M. Chin and some of our JASA members for sharing their photos

and of course Surfing with Autism was a great success. There is nothing like a happy child to prove it.

How to talk to your kids about Autism

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 03:10:57 +0000

How to talk to kids about #Autism…

Keep it simple and honest

Keep it REAL

Autism is part of life it is okay to talk about it… Read more here >http://ht.ly/9NPIW

Balloon Release

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 02:52:50 +0000

Shine a light on Autism- Light it up Blue

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 14:42:41 +0000

For the 1st time ever in Jamaica….

The Jamaica Autism Support Association is asking all Jamaicans, especially those living with Autism, to participate in Light It Up Blue on the evenings of April 1 & 2.

We are asking you to light up your house and/or business place on these evenings in blue, It could be a blue bulb or blue Christmas lights.

We are doing this in an effort to raise Autism Awareness in Jamaica. We will be joining many organizations, families, businesses and iconic buildings worldwide in lighting it up blue.

Confirmed participants are: Emancipation Park, UWI’s Administrative Building, several stores in Devon House. More confirmations to come later.

Help us to SHINE A LIGHT ON AUTISM Light it up blue!

Sharing links

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:38:11 +0000

From Health News Daily

Why Autism Diagnosis Can Change as Children Grow Up

Children with autism tend to also have other disorders, such as a learning disability or depression, which affect them in different ways as they age, a new study finds.

The findings may explain, in part, why children with autism often see a change in their diagnoses as they grow older, the study suggests.

Click here to read more.

and From Reuters.com

Anxiety, other disorders more common in autism

Autism tends to go hand in hand with a variety of other mental and behavioral conditions in kids, suggests a new study that highlights the fuzzy nature of autism diagnoses themselves.

Researchers said that other disorders that often go along with autism — such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or learning disabilities — may complicate the diagnosis, or slow down any improvement in kids who do get diagnosed and treated early.