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rushfanatic
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07 Nov 2007, 9:14 am

Jenny McCarthy, the so-called comedian and one-time centerfold model, has a new book out about her son, who was recently diagnosed with autism. She says she has cured him of autism, has appeared on Larry King hawking her book and her notions that autism can be treated..I am outraged at her disillusioned theory! You cannot cure autism ,you can try to reach them ,but you can not cure them..She makes me soo mad, she is setting up thousands of hopeful parents who think there is a cure for this. I would like to hear your opinions on this, she is doing more harm than good, and by her credentials, she has brought nothing to the table to speak on this......Gotta calm down here............Thanks..



IdahoRose
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07 Nov 2007, 10:02 am

What makes me angry is that she doesn't accept her son's autism as a part of who is his. When she appeared on Oprah, she said something to the effect of, "My son would flap his hands. I always thought it was a part of who he was, but then I found out it was autism." Autism is a part of who he is. Besides, thinking that she has cured her son by putting him on some diet is setting her up for disappointment later in life, because even though she is treating his symptoms, he is still autistic and it's bound to show sooner or later.



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07 Nov 2007, 10:47 am

I think she is just trying to make a buck from her son's illness.



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07 Nov 2007, 11:34 am

I would like her to admit that there isn't a cure. There's just a "throw money at the problem and make it appear not so bad". She has lots of that. I think she's an idiot. ITA that there comes a point when you must accept that it is part of who we are and what makes us the wonderful (albeit sometimes demented) people that we are.


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shaggydaddy
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07 Nov 2007, 12:53 pm

Averick wrote:
I think she is just trying to make a buck from her son's illness.



She is trying to make a buck by calling her son's personality an illness.



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07 Nov 2007, 2:30 pm

She is probably just a parent that has good intentions. I could see how the diet could lessen the symptoms, but probably not all. I hope she has come to terms with his autism before trying to 'cure' it. It is also possible that the diet she has come up with only is right for her son and may have no effect on others.



rushfanatic
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07 Nov 2007, 2:32 pm

I just feel so much outrage about her false crusade , she is a birdbrain who is doing more harm than good.. Bring this child back to the public eye when he is 18, gainfully employed, captain of his football team, in an exclusive realationship with a young woman, and I may reconsider my opinion. Until then, she needs to become educated with autism, the traits, the early intervention methods, etc...she really, really irritates me, and very few people make me feel like this......I just had to vent, thanks.,,....



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07 Nov 2007, 2:49 pm

obviously shes cute and i'd bone her like it was 1994 but either her son didnt have autism, or she wanted back infront of the camera. i saw that larry king episode and her son looked fairly normal to me



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07 Nov 2007, 5:54 pm

I could accept the fact that she just wanted her son to be happy (although it seems to me like she has a very narrow idea of happiness...) if she wasn't so... tactless about it. They printed an interview with her in the newspaper, and it stuck in my head because she used the word "fix" so much, as in "I needed to fix my kid."
Um, excuse me? Fix? Unless the kid's arms were falling off on a regular basis, I fail to see what there is to fix!


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07 Nov 2007, 6:06 pm

Another thing that angers me about Jenny McCarthy is that she could use her fame and fortune to raise awareness of autism and advocate for autistic rights, and instead she uses it to get people to feel sorry for her and further the mentality that autism is a nasty disease.



rushfanatic
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07 Nov 2007, 6:55 pm

When my daughter was young, I remember sitting her on the counter to attempt communication with her...It was so difficult for her, and my words to her were, "Sammi, I know you're in there"... I wanted to reach her so badly..We took each day, each moment,one piece at a time.. Today, at almost 18, I look at her in awe..I am so proud of her..She has autism ,always will, and I have endless Asperger's traits, always will. We are not to be fixed, we are who we are. We can be reached, taught to overcome obstacles, but we will never be seperate from autism. It is indeed who we are. It is the mystery of our lives, and it is most fascinating... It is as if Jenny is ashamed of her son, that he is not perfect like she expected him to be... i am literally in awe of my children, they are blessings...



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07 Nov 2007, 7:48 pm

From the moment Jenny McCarthy started publishing her little parenting books, I was not happy about it. I seem to disagree with her on just about everything. She goes on in one of her books about circumcising her son because "penises are so much PRETTIER that way" which is hardly a good reason to chop off a piece of a baby boy's genitals. Not looking to start a debate here, but for god sakes if you're gonna do it... at least have a real reason that you've put some time and effort into researching. And to proudly go on about it in a book... oh, please. I think she made similar comments about breastfeeding. Whatever.

That said, I haven't looked at her new book about her son's autism, or paid any attention to her in the media talking about it, because I'm already too put off by her to bring myself to care what she has to say.



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07 Nov 2007, 7:50 pm

I think you guys are all being too hard on Jenny McCarthy. I mean, if anyone could understand the emotions that she went through when she found out her child had autism, it is us. She may be a little naive and in denial, but she has hope that her child can live a "normal" life. I think some here are offended because you believe that she is not accepting him for who he is, who is a kid with autism and autism is a part of him. I understand this, but I honestly don't believe the autism is him, when it comes to his "soul" or who he is as a person. I know as a person with AS, I couldn't express who I was because of the AS. The AS was a condition that has prevented me to express my feelings for decades. I don't accept it as who I am to be honest and neither should Jenny.



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07 Nov 2007, 8:08 pm

Jenny is acting like she's a cure revival preacher. It's so easy for parents to get into group denial and enable each other's hopes, false or not, that, one day, their kids will be cured. Then when the uncured kid grows up, the parent is unprepared, having put most of his or her efforts, energy and cash into cure treatments, while bonding with other parents who are also in the Chruch of the Cure.

There is no cure. Between the ages of three and seven, there have been documented cases of kids who were diagnosed as autistic snapping out of it, treated or not. You better believe that the guys hawking cures grab as much credit as they can when a spontaneous cure happens. Then they milk that success story for all its worth to get more grants and parents worshiping at the alter of The Cure.

We need to tell the Cure Churches that they owe it to the parents and kids to help prepare for a realistic future and accept their wonderful kids, in addition to finding new treatments.

I really hope that someone finds what causes seizures in autistic people and some other things that cause discomfort for my daughter, like a nervous temperament that makes her act out in destructive ways but I love her personality. The name Defeat Autism Now is such an aggressive, mean name..


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07 Nov 2007, 8:36 pm

Jenny McCarthy's various books are available at the library where I work. They contain some of the most crass language I've ever seen. Her focus is completely wrong. Instead of seeking a "cure," per se, she should have focused on helping her son develop his maximum potential. I agree with many of the other posters here. I would like to see Evan when he is grown up. Will his accomplishments to date be belittled by the school system and by his peers? Will the net result be an individual who functions fully in society, or will he break down because his achievements are considered less than that of a "typical" person, no matter if that person is dumb as dirt, so long as he or she is "popular?"



AnnabelLee
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07 Nov 2007, 8:38 pm

IdahoRose wrote:
Another thing that angers me about Jenny McCarthy is that she could use her fame and fortune to raise awareness of autism and advocate for autistic rights, and instead she uses it to get people to feel sorry for her and further the mentality that autism is a nasty disease.


I think it worse than that. She is putting forth the idea that autism is "curable" which is going to take back a lot of the things we have won for the cause of autism. I am so sick of people telling me I could get over this if I wanted to. Now, she's making people think that we really can get over it. This bothers me and makes me so angry. She offends me so much. I cannot stand her for this. She is damaging the cause of autism awareness (how aware are people if they think we can cure this), giving too high of expectations and hope to parents (who are going to "expect" that if they do things the way she did, their child's autism will be cured too), and God knows what else, aside from causing guilt in parents whose children are already grown because they didn't "cure" them, and causing auties anger and stress. She is a brainless moron.


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