Autism and Asperger’s syndrome, a related disorder, can be overcome. A number of famous people have done just that ranging from the lovely and talented actor, Daryl Hannah, to Pulitzer Prize winning author and critic, Tim Page. History provides many other examples of famous people who were probably autistic or ASD (Asperger’s Syndrome Disorder) including Thomas Jefferson, Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. As more is discovered about these disorders, it has become clear that they are more prevalent than was previously suspected. Current estimates are that as many as one in one hundred people are afflicted by them to some degree.
AWARES, for example, is the All Wales Autism Resources organization which was not only associated with hosting the Third International Autism Conference there, but has been active in providing services to those afflicted by these disorders, especially children. Early assessment and evaluation can be critical in facilitating a child's ability to mature into a successful adult. For example, most children will babble spontaneously by the time they are about 12 months of age. They will also gesture spontaneously by waving, for example. Children afflicted by autism, Asperger’s syndrome (ASD), however, cannot. They do not react to outside stimuli in a normal way. At age sixteen months a normal baby will speak single words and by twenty-four months of age, a normal child will utter short phrases of two words or more spontaneously. Afflicted children will not. Although there is no cure for these disorders, there are services, medications and even special diets that can facilitate improved communication with the world around. These disorders can be overcome even if they cannot be cured in the usual sense of the word.
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