{"id":1849,"date":"2012-11-12T17:35:29","date_gmt":"2012-11-12T17:35:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/?p=1849"},"modified":"2023-11-08T10:21:05","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T18:21:05","slug":"autism-advocacy-how-temple-grandin-conquered-her-diagnosis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/speech-therapy-techniques\/autism-advocacy-how-temple-grandin-conquered-her-diagnosis\/","title":{"rendered":"Autism Advocacy: How Temple Grandin Conquered Her Diagnosis"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Autism<\/a>

Image source: Indyweek.com<\/p><\/div>\n

Autism advocacy and awareness has received a boost in the U.S. in recent years.<\/a> There has also been an alarming rise in autism diagnoses. According to the Centers for Disease Control,<\/a> 1 in 88 children will be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) by the age of 8. Although we know more about autism than ever before, much still remains a mystery. Many parents would give anything to be able to communicate with their nonverbal children and ask them how they perceive the world around them. This is one of the many reasons why Temple Grandin is such an influential hero in the autism community.<\/p>\n

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Autism Advocacy<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the mid-1980s, Temple Grandin attended a conference of the Autism Society of America (ASA). She was approached by one of the founders of the organization and was invited to speak at the conference the following year. Although it was her first time speaking, Temple Grandin’s performance was comparable to that of a professional keynote speaker.<\/a> She was incredibly effective. She was able to answer questions from parents desperate to learn about how their autistic children perceived the world and why they acted the way that they did. Temple Grandin continues to share her experiences and insights during her many public appearances. She has also appeared in at least three documentaries, and has been the subject of a semi-biographical film, Temple Grandin<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Temple Grandin\u2019s Childhood<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the 1940s and \u201850s, very little was known about autism spectrum disorder. Autism advocacy was unheard of. Even through the 1970s, clinicians were using \u201ctreatments\u201d like electric shock therapy and LSD on autistic children. <\/a>Fortunately for Temple Grandin, her mother, Eustacia Cutler, was determined to help her. Without an early intervention program to support her, Eustacia found teachers, a speech therapist, and an excellent nanny for Temple.<\/p>\n