Autism
Is it just me or is autism all over the news this week?
I haven't read any of the articles I've seen, but from what I gather in bullets and headlines, there's some court case going on involving autism and vaccines??
I get most of my news from NPR in the mornings and afternoons during my commute, and I haven't heard about it there; maybe that's due to my new, awesome, shorter commute. CNN seems to be all over it, though.
Besides my usual non-interest as a non-parent, I just don't want to read any more articles or stories about any parents taking care of any type of handicapped child. In one of my Myspace groups a couple weeks ago, there was a discussion about that "pillow angel" kid and the parents who had her reproductive organs removed... Oh My Fucking Gawd. The martyrs really came out of the woodwork in that discussion, and I've had more than enough sanctimonious martyrdom from parents of special needs kids to last me the quarter, if not half the year.
What kills me is that so many of them (not all, I'm sure) don't seem to think about the impact to everyone else once they're either gone or unable to care for special junior. I think I've mentioned it before, but just in case, as a future primary guardian of a handicapped individual, here's where I'm coming from: (cross posted from one of the threads)
I get annoyed at how parents seem to think they’re doing this great thing when it ends up being other family members who have to take up the slack when the parents get old/die/whatehaveyou.
Maybe I don’t get it because I’m not super close to my family, but I wonder if they think they’re going to be around forever or if they just assume that because they enjoyed being a martyr and/or raising a handicapped child that someone else in the family will gladly take up the cause when they can’t do it themselves anymore...
Don’t get me wrong, I love my brother in law, but I also recognize that the first year or two that it falls to my husband and I to look after him will likely be the hardest time in our marriage. We get to choose not to have kids, and while we technically can put my BIL in a home and/or make him a ward of the state, it’s not something we would feel right doing, so we don’t feel like we’re quite as free to make the choice to care for him, if that makes any sense.
I’m definitely torn in general about it these kinds of situations. In ours, we at least have the luxury of preparing for it. But I really hate how selfless some parents think they’re being about their handicapped children when in fact, they’re not thinking about the impact they will eventually be forcing on the rest of their families if they don't make solid financial and medical plans for these children.
I haven't read any of the articles I've seen, but from what I gather in bullets and headlines, there's some court case going on involving autism and vaccines??
I get most of my news from NPR in the mornings and afternoons during my commute, and I haven't heard about it there; maybe that's due to my new, awesome, shorter commute. CNN seems to be all over it, though.
Besides my usual non-interest as a non-parent, I just don't want to read any more articles or stories about any parents taking care of any type of handicapped child. In one of my Myspace groups a couple weeks ago, there was a discussion about that "pillow angel" kid and the parents who had her reproductive organs removed... Oh My Fucking Gawd. The martyrs really came out of the woodwork in that discussion, and I've had more than enough sanctimonious martyrdom from parents of special needs kids to last me the quarter, if not half the year.
What kills me is that so many of them (not all, I'm sure) don't seem to think about the impact to everyone else once they're either gone or unable to care for special junior. I think I've mentioned it before, but just in case, as a future primary guardian of a handicapped individual, here's where I'm coming from: (cross posted from one of the threads)
I get annoyed at how parents seem to think they’re doing this great thing when it ends up being other family members who have to take up the slack when the parents get old/die/whatehaveyou.
Maybe I don’t get it because I’m not super close to my family, but I wonder if they think they’re going to be around forever or if they just assume that because they enjoyed being a martyr and/or raising a handicapped child that someone else in the family will gladly take up the cause when they can’t do it themselves anymore...
Don’t get me wrong, I love my brother in law, but I also recognize that the first year or two that it falls to my husband and I to look after him will likely be the hardest time in our marriage. We get to choose not to have kids, and while we technically can put my BIL in a home and/or make him a ward of the state, it’s not something we would feel right doing, so we don’t feel like we’re quite as free to make the choice to care for him, if that makes any sense.
I’m definitely torn in general about it these kinds of situations. In ours, we at least have the luxury of preparing for it. But I really hate how selfless some parents think they’re being about their handicapped children when in fact, they’re not thinking about the impact they will eventually be forcing on the rest of their families if they don't make solid financial and medical plans for these children.