Customer Reviews
Excellent First-hand Account of a Family's Struggle! 
2008-01-01
Autism is a mysterious disease. Lynn Hamilton is a mother, devoted to her family and to her Christian faith. She and her husband, Roger, learn their firstborn son, Ryan has autism after several tests and meetings with specialist. Lynn writes about how she blamed herself for being a bad mother but there is the explanation that you're not at fault, there is something wrong with your son, Ryan. The news of autism is both good and bad because Lynn and Roger are not bad parents. They are now determined to conquer autism in their son. While the book is useful with information about autism networks around the country, the book is also supportive, kind, and compassionate. Lynn writes about their ordeal and it serves a purpose to help other families who may not have the resources to get their autistic kids help properly. Today, autism is more than Dustin Hoffman's Oscar-winning role in Rain Man, or Chad Allen's role as the autistic son in St. Elsewhere. Autism is far more complicated and difficult to explain but a mystery as to why it exists. Maybe it always has, we are finally discovering it's existence as to why some people have to follow strict patterns, rituals, or show lack of emotion. People with autism can have fulfilling lives as anybody else. I was surprised by Lynn's constant faith in God through this book. Also, the author is very resourceful on supplying information for parents as well as contacting certain government and public agencies; providing clear definitions regarding terms; and offering possible solutions like changing diets. She writes about hos she changed her son's diet which helped improve his behavior.
great read... 2007-10-07
Lots of great info on all of the questions you may ask about Autism. I was encouraged to read "Facing Autism" by another mother, and I would do the same for someone else.
Best Book On Autism I've Ever Found 2007-06-11
This is the best book on autism I have ever found. I have autism, so whenever I need to explain anything to someone, I just grab this book. It's a great book to read, whether you're a parent, caregiver, educator, or psychologist. Parents can especially relate to the book because it's about a couple trying to raise their autistic son from infancy to preteen years.
HOPE FOR AUTISM 2007-04-12
THIS IS THE 1ST BOOK I READ AFTER MY GRANDSON WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM. NOW THAT I HAVE FINISHED READING IT, I HAVE A POSITIVE, HOPEFUL SENSE OF DIRECTION TO TAKE WITH THE TREATMENT AND INTERVENTIONS WE NEED TO RECOVER OUR GRANDSON FROM AUTISM. I HIGHLY RECCOMMEND THIS BOOK TO ALL PARENTS AND FRIENDS OF A NEWLY DIAGNOSED CHILD WITH AUTISM.
My first recommendation 2007-01-13
When my 5 y.o. was diagnosed PDD-NOS. I was at a complete loss at what that all meant. I picked up this book and it covered pretty much everything I was questioning as well as raising more questions to bring up with all the docs and other people you end up working with for your child. If it wasn't for this book, I would not have been as informed (actually I would have been a complete dolt on the subject) when we started the run around of finding the services neccesary for my son.
Lynn's recommendation of starting a binder of your child's medical history as well as keeping separate sections for each consultant, BSC, TSS, school, etc... Was genius! When I prepared that before our state examination and then had it ready for the intake, the psychologist was surprised and impressed that I had EVERYTHING right there to answer his questions. I was relieved myself as my son was not very cooperative for me to focus on answering questions without that binder.
Overall, this book has become my bible of autism. It may not explain everything in gross detail (it would be way too long, and frankly boring) but it did cover everything that I am able to speak fluently about autism and what it entails all around. My husband who is not a reader is now fluent because the book is an easy read and informative.
Thank you Lynn! It was especially encouraging to see in print the battle for parents to aquire the services that a child with ASD needs and knowing I wasn't the only one with the run around.
There is hope and there is help! 2006-10-03
Don't Let Autism Have the Last Word in Your Child's Life.
Perhaps one of the most devastating things you can learn as a parent is that your child has been diagnosed with autism. A multifaceted disorder, autism has long baffled parents and professionals alike. At one time, doctors gave parents virtually no hope for combating the disorder. But in recent years, new treatments and therapies have demonstrated that improvement is possible. With intensive, early intervention, some children have recovered from autism and have been integrated into school, indistinguishable from their peers.
Discover ten things you can do to begin battling your child's autism right now.
See why Applied Behavior Analysis has become parents' treatment of choice, and examine its impressive results.
Get information on cutting-edge biomedical treatments such as secretin and immunotherapy.
Learn how dietary intervention can positively impact your child's behavior.
Find out what additional therapies can offer - including sensory and auditory integration.
Explore loving ways to keep your family together when your world is torn apart.
Children with autism
do have the possibility to improve greatly, and some even overcome the effects of autism, if appropriate therapies are begun early enough. Discover the steps you can take today to begin the fight for your child's future in
Facing Autism.
Anecdotal with a lot of grasping at straws 
2006-05-17
The focus of the book seems to be how to try every snake oil solution first, add in a lot of prayer and then seek help from qualified ABA therapists. It is informational and a good read - for what NOT to do. Try - 'Overcoming Autism' as your first book - Lynn Koegel and Claire LaZebnik. I give it two stars since it doesn't really educate how to approach autism so much as how NOT to approach autism.
The #1 Intro Book 2005-09-26
As the parent of an Autistic son, I cannot say how appreciative I was to have found this book. When you first hear of Autism and think that your child could be on the spectrum, you can feel lost. When we were looking at where to turn, we found Lynn's book. The wonderful thing is that the book gives you hope mixed with lots of practical advice and some ideas on where to turn.
I would highly reccomend this bok, along with Karyn Seroussi's book "Unraveling the Mysteries of Autism" as a great first read on the "nuts and bolts" of how to start to help a child with Autism.
excellent! excellent! excellent! 2005-08-13
My son John was diagnosed borderline autism. To me that was enough. I picked this book up within a week of the diagnois and to say that it helped me cope and be strong for my son is an understatement. While I was in the middle of reading chapter three, we began ABA therapy and within weeks saw major improvements. Lynn did an amazing job of being straightforward and unbiased to all treatments. I recommend this book for everyone with a child who is borderline or falls completely under the category of pdd.
Rubik's Cube of Autism 2005-05-14
This is an excellent book for parents of children with autism. The Hamiltons' oldest child, Ryan, was born in 1992 with no overt signs of autism. He did not display classic or overt autistic behaviors until he was a year old.
The Hamiltons were religious missionaries and spent the summer of 1993 in Russia with Ryan. It was in Russia that that Ryan's language became depleted; his behavior consisting of more self-stimming than of actual playing and his developmental lags were glaring among his peers. After that missionary period, the Hamiltons returned to the U.S. and began making the round of specialists.
In late 1994, their daughter was born and Ryan's autism was all the more marked alongside of her neurotypical (NT) development. Luckily for all, the Hamiltons began a megavitamin regimine for Ryan; ABA (formerly behavior modification) therapy and intensive training sessions for the boy. By the fall of 1998, Ryan, then 5 and starting kindergarten was described as being "indistinguishable" from his NT peers.
I like the way Lynn Hamilton includes scientific/physiological explanations for what takes place in the body when taking certain vitamins and medications; her knowledge of nutrition and her inclusion of world wide sites and agencies geared for individuals with autism. I also like the chapter Lynn's husband Roger wrote, sharing his insights as the father of a child with autism. One crucial point he made was to include the other children in the family, in this case their daughter when pointing things out to the child with autism and to take time to make little fun trips between therapy sessions. An excellent point that was made throughout the book is that by providing services to children with autism will be cost efficient in the long run because follow up work with adults with autism can prove to be quite costly. From a monetary standpoint, rehabilitation services such as housing and job assistance and also a purely human standpoint- the sooner services are provided to families who need them, the less likely the individual with autism will need extra help in the long run.
Autism is presented in this book as a Rubik's Cube. Like that famous cube, you can turn the many facets in any direction, yet to find that elusive full match. Many different perspectives are given, e.g. physiological; economic; therapeutic and each interlocks with the others.
As a Christian, I loved the way her faith sustained her; the inclusion of passages from Scripture were very moving indeed. I like that and think of it as a kind of faith sharing.
