Steph's Two Girls: Stephs 366 pics

I have (some might say foolishly) agreed to try and post a new photo for every day this year.

I thought it would be a lovely way to have a visual flick back at the end of the year, and to hopefully see the change in the girls. It should also make us smile lots by remembering different occasions.

If you are interested, please click on this link here to see my 2012 pictures!

What is autism?

'Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects the way a person communicates and relates to people around them. People with autism have difficulties with everyday social interaction'.

'Autism is a complex developmental disability involving a biological or organic defect in the functioning of the brain'.
(NAS)

Statistics now say 1 in 100 children have autism; only 1 in 4 of those is a girl.

What is PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance)?

According to the NAS (National Autistic Society) website, the main features of children with PDA are:

obsessively resisting ordinary demands
appearing sociable on the surface but lacking depth in their understanding (often recognised by parents early on)
excessive mood swings, often switching suddenly
comfortable (sometimes to an extreme extent) in role play and pretending
language delay, seemingly as a result of passivity, but often with a good degree of 'catch-up'
obsessive behaviour, often focused on people rather than things.

You can read about this in a bit more detail (but nice simple language!) by clicking here. The bit that resonates most with me is:

'People with PDA are often very sociable and can display degrees of empathy previously not thought to be consistent with autism. Sometimes it seems that they are able to understand other people at an intellectual level but not at an emotional one. However, despite their use of social niceties, their social interaction is very often flawed by their inability to see the bigger picture, their lack of boundaries and their desire to be in control of the situation. They often understand rules but don't feel they apply to themselves. As children, this can lead to playground peer group difficulties. One parent described how "to other children he will happily act as if he was their mother - 'have you washed your hands' or 'don't put your elbows on the table' - but he doesn't have a sense of needing to follow the same rules."'

Why blog?

Autism is a hidden disability. I think a lot of people don't really know much about autism. That included myself before we were given this diagnosis for Sasha. So blogging is for me a small way of spreading the word. Autism is not a bad word, but something that is still rarely talked about despite the recorded increase in diagnosis. Some people who I mentioned our diagnosis to said 'oh yes, I've seen a television programme on autism, but Sasha's nothing like that'. Well no, she's not severly autistic, but it's a wide spectrum and affects each individual in a different way. I know there's a lot of people out there with bigger challenges in life and I have no idea how they cope. I'm just grateful that I have support from good family and friends, and that we have two beautiful girls who make us laugh (and sometimes cry!) in different ways every day.

Steph's Two Girls

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Stephs 366 pics

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