A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE

Don't forget to tune into Larry King Live tonight!

By Julie Obradovic

I was sitting here today, basking in all that has been glorious about today's World Autism Day coverage, when something astonishing occurred to me.

Was it really just one year ago that we were jumping out of our seats because Oprah actually let Katie Wright SAY the word vaccine? Does anyone else remember that? Just the WORD being on television as something related to Autism was cause for a celebration!

My how far we've come in such a short time!

In the whirl-wind that is being an Autism crusader, it's easy to get bogged down in the negativity and the daily grind of dealing with misinformation, bad reporting, and self-righteous idiots. It's easy to lose sight of that light at the end of the tunnel.

But when you pick your head up out of that muck for a minute and actually think about all that has happened in just 12 short months, you can't help but fill up with hope and pride.

Of course there's still an enormous amount of work to be done for our children. And of course, there's still so much we still have to overcome on many fronts.

But consider the following:

In one year, we've gone from being excited about the "V" word simply being mentioned as a possible causative factor, to having an entire day dedicated to the global prevalence of the disorder, with multiple mentions of the involvement of vaccines (and an interview with Dr. Gupta and Dr. Poling on CNN about that issue exclusively).

We've gone from being a movement with a growing under-current that most people casually dismissed, to a powerful tidal wave with Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey surfing on top.

We've seen the first of what may (hopefully) be many concessions in the "Vaccine Court".

We've watched the Rescue Post morph into the Age of Autism, with several posts powerful enough to change the world, and several more I'm confident will be revered one day for their wisdom.

We've had Dr. Bryan Jepson's "Changing the Course of Autism" published and circulated amongst the medical community. We've had Jenny McCarthy's "Louder than Words" hit the best-seller mark.

We've watched our own Kim Stagliano and family welcomed on a Good Morning America segment.

We're about to witness the national screening of the incredible and beautiful documentary "Beautiful Son" on public television stations. Similarly, we're about to premier Generation Rescue's "Autism Yesterday" to hopeful audiences world-wide.

We've read (with mouth wide open and skepticism abound) a press release from the American Academy of Pediatrics stating they're interested in investigating the DAN! protocol so many of us are using to treat and recover our children.

And tonight, we will finally (finally!!!) see David Kirby himself on Larry King Live!

I know that I have overlooked so much more. To any and all of you not specifically mentioned, you are included here too.

The point is this:

We've come a long way in one year. And if today is any indication, we're only getting started.

Congratulations, everyone. I'm proud to be among you.

Julie Obradovic is a High School Spanish Teacher in the suburbs of Chicago where she lives with her husband and 3 beautiful children, one of whom is recovered from Autism. She is a member of the NAA, a Rescue Angel, and founder of the Southwest Suburban Biomedical Support Group. Last year she threw the First Annual Evening for ACE, a benefit that raised several thousand dollars for the Autism Center for Enlightenment, Dr. Anju Usman's not-for-profit organization.

Comments

[Monica]

I was thinking the same thing about the Oprah show today. Jade was dx'd in September 2005, and at the time, it seemed NOBODY was talking about autism, let alone the vaccines, not anywhere but the internet, that is.

Within weeks of her dx, autism seemed to explode on the news!

That moment on Oprah, I felt so empowered. We had just received the immunology testing that confirmed Jade's immunodeficiency the month before. The rest of the pieces simply fell into place.

To think it was only 12 months ago. So much has happenned the last 12 months, it is hard to keep up! We have come so far. I am so excited to see what the next 12 hold.