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One child with autism is a big enough challenge for any family. But what happens when a family has more than one child with the disorder? Two Penguin books discuss the moving and inspiring stories of multiples with autism.
Three Times the Love
Finding Answers and Hope for Our Triplets with Autism
Lynn and Randy Gaston - Author
$25.00 - Add to Cart
Book: Hardcover | 9.25 x 6.25in | 240 pages | ISBN 9781583333501 | 19 Mar 2009 | Avery | 14 - AND UP years
Synopsis:
Three Times the Love is the inspiring true story of an ordinary American family who face an extraordinary challenge. Lynn and Randy Gaston were overjoyed to discover they were having triplets after many arduous years of trying to conceive. But eighteen months after their births, Lynn and Randy's sons began exhibiting odd new behaviors-among them, toe walking, arm flapping, and in one of the boys, Nicholas, a sudden muteness. Terrified and dumbfounded, Lynn began researching their behavior on the Internet. The same glaring diagnosis kept popping up-each boy was displaying symptoms of autism, though at different points on the spectrum.
With little support from their own pediatrician, Randy and Lynn continued to investigate autism and alternative treatments exhaustively, convinced that Nicholas, Hunter, and Zachary needed immediate help. With nowhere to turn, they hired their own therapists and began intensive behavioral treatment, not covered by their health insurance. Stymied when their own public school misdiagnosed the boys, they eventually decided to sell their house and move to a school district that offered therapy programs for children with autism.
Along this challenging and confusing journey, Randy and Lynn have become fierce advocates for their sons as they race against time to find answers. And they've made it their mission to arm other parents with the information, guidance, and support they were looking for so desperately once their boys began regressing. With invaluable advice ranging from educational programs to legal issues to a comprehensive assessment of the therapies and interventions that have worked for their three unique children, the Gastons provide a road map for all families who will need to follow them through the trenches.
Three Times the Love is the beautifully told story of the unstoppable devotion of two loving parents to their children. Filled with practical advice and an extensive resource list, it is an essential guide for any family touched by autism.
Excerpt:
1. FLICKERING HEARTBEATS
Randy and I were introduced to our babies the same way as many modern parents-on a sonogram screen in a darkened doctor's office. But because my pregnancy was in vitro, we were able to view them during the first weeks after conception.
At first we couldn't see much on the screen except for a blur, as if a microscope were zooming in and out on an image. But as our eyes became adjusted, we began to make out flickers of light, pulsing like stars against an evening sky.
The doctor said, "Okay, those little flickers are heartbeats."
Then he turned up the volume so we could hear them-the thump and whoosh of life.
"We're looking for more than one here," he said-our first real verification that we were in fact having twins. "Okay, let's count."
"One flicker," the doctor said.
"Two flickers," said Randy.
Suddenly the doctor's voice fell flat.
"Three flickers."
"Triplets!" Randy whooped, in his exuberant touchdown voice.
Read the rest of the excerpt for Three Times the Love here
Miracle Run
Watching My Autistic Sons Grow Up - and Take Their First Steps Into Adulthood
Corrine Morgan-Thomas and Gary Brozek - Author
$15.00 - Add to Cart
Book: Paperback | 8.26 x 5.23in | 336 pages | ISBN 9780425225820 | 03 Mar 2009 | Berkley | 18 - AND UP
Synopsis:
The inspiration for the Lifetime movie and a guide for parents confronting their autistic children's journeys to adulthood.
Parents of autistic children often wonder: What will happen to our kids when they grow up? Can they work? Have relationships and their own families? Here is the poignant story of one woman watching her autistic boys reach adulthood.
A single mother barely making ends meet, Corrine Morgan-Thomas could hardly afford doctors for her twins, Stephen and Phillip. After their diagnosis of autism, no one else thought these boys would ever amount to anything. But Corrine managed single-handedly to keep the boys out of institutions-and in "regular" school. And their inspiring story became Lifetime television's Miracle Run.
The real miracle, though, was what happened where the movie left off-when Stephen and Phillip graduated to face adult autism. From their diagnosis to the present day, when the boys have grown into young men leading happy lives, Corrine's eye-opening story is full of candor, humor, and most of all, hope.
Excerpt:
In any teen's life, two rites of passage stand out: first love and getting a driver's license. As complicated as both those matters can be, when you factor autism into the equation, you have to have a mastery of higher math and a grasp of the chemistry of the volatile emotions of teenagers firmly in your mind.
Although I had mixed feelings about them falling in love, I firmly believed that Stephen and Phillip had the right to apply for and to try to get their driver's licenses. If they passed the written and the driving tests, demonstrating the competency that any other citizen possessed, then why not?
On the other hand, I had some pretty good why- nots in mind. The anxiety level they both exhibited in new situations, especially when exposed to things like loud noises, would potentially make them a danger to themselves and to other drivers. All the medications that Phillip was on and the unpredictable interactions among those drugs didn't make him a good candidate for driving. When I stacked those reasons up against their strong desire to drive, and what more potent symbol of a teen's freedom and independence exists than driving, I was torn. I didn't want to be the one to stand in the way of their dream being fulfilled. To give you a better idea of how much driving meant to him, Phillip had written a song aptly titled "The DMV Song." I didn't like to ever play favorites, but I could reasonably imagine Stephen being able to earn his license. With Phillip, I thought the odds were stacked against him.
Read the rest of the excerpt for Miracle Run here
Posted by: Sarah Christensen Fu, Online Content Coordinator
