My feeling after watching Ocean Heaven (海洋天堂)

Kind of Sad, Scare, Helpless and Hopeless. Any good backup plan before I die? I cannot live forever ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_Heaven

Miracle please..

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Amazing Umar

Twelve year old Umar, a Malaysian autistic child, amazes at the Kidzcare concert at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas with the song " I dreamed a dream"



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Parents Often Miss Subtle Autism Signs

The symptoms of autism tend to emerge in children after six months of age, with a loss of social and communications skills that is more common and more subtle than previously thought, according to a new study that questions previous assumptions about the progression of the condition.  

At six months, children with autism spectrum disorder demonstrated behavior similar to other children, gazing at faces, sharing smiles, and vocalizing with similar frequency, researchers reported online in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 

However, autistic children displayed fewer of these behaviors as as they got older, and from six months to 18 months the loss of social communication and skills typically became clear. 

To read more click here...
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How to handle a special child

I was touched by this presentation about Randy..

http://www.lostcausekidmovie.com/
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Self Help Hypnosis

Self hypnosis is a very powerful way to manage a wide range of issues of problems that we have. Next Click on the pictures below that best describe your concern, and self hypnosis your issues and problems away.













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Best Treatment Options for Autism

If you're really worried a loved one with Autism might never truly enjoy life to the full. Finally, You Too Can Join Others Who Have Discovered Simple Methods To Effectively Spot The 31 Signs of Autism;  Learnt Critical Information To Maximize the Potential of Someone With Autism

Continue reading to learn how others like you overcame confusion; uncertainty; discovered the "best" treatment options for their loved one with autism. Click Here!

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Unlocking secrets of autism treatment

It's a disease with unknown causes, no known cure and treatments as varied as the minds forced to live with it.

Success for a person with autism can be measured by something as simple as being able to sit quietly through dinner at a restaurant - something it may take years for that person to learn.

And if one form of therapy is more successful than another in unlocking minds and personalities trapped by the ailment, executive director Frederica Blausten and her Association for Metroarea Autistic Children (AMAC) staff will probably be a part of finding it.

Autism is a developmental disorder "characterized by impaired social interaction, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and unusual, repetitive or severely limited activities and interests," says the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes Web site.

"There are all sorts of public policy definitions of autism," Blausten said. "It is a neurodevelopmental disorder that primarily affects social and emotional development, socialization skills, social interactions and language.

"We do not know what causes autism, and there is no biological test where you can take blood and say, 'Aha! You're autistic.' Diagnoses are made by observable functions and behaviors, which makes it [diagnosis] so difficult."

AMAC's W. 17th St. facility is all about observing the several hundred students - ranging in age from pre-schoolers to people in their 40s - and designing treatments for each.

Classrooms and hallways are equipped with video cameras that record all students and teachers as they go about the school day.

Observations from those videos are teamed with meticulous classroom notes and daily student evaluation reports done by teachers to design individual student treatment therapies, Blausten said.

Dr. Nyla Lamm, AMAC's director of research and applied behavior analysis training, then crunches the report numbers to see not only what therapies work, but which teachers are more effective.

"If we have something that is really working, we want to get it out there so more people can use it," Lamm said.

Said Blausten: "We have a saying: You do not get a raise for getting older; you get a raise for getting better.'"

Nothing proves what works like results: last week, several AMAC students took the state Regents exams in several subjects.

That success could figure in why Blausten is now reviewing 120 applications for 40 student openings.

"Our goal is to move people out when they are ready," she said.

Though stung, like most nonprofit groups, by a recession-fueled drop in donations, AMAC has continued several initiatives.

In September, AMAC will hold opening ceremonies for a two-building, full-time facility for adult men with autism on 129th St. in Harlem.

In August, it will again operate Camp AMAC - billed as the the only camp for autistic children on the East Coast - at Alpine, N.J.

The two-week camp "gives students and their families a much-needed break," Blausten said. "We get camp applications from around the country."

To learn more about AMAC or to make a donation, call (212) 645-5005, or see the Web site www.amac.org. crichardson@nydailynews.com

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Fear is the force behind autism

Temple Grandin, renowned author and representative of the autism world shares her views on the mystery of autism spectrum disorder. I first met Temple Grandin nearly 20 years ago, as she was invited to speak about the very disorder that controlled her own life. A few years later I met her mother, whose tenacity and devotion to Temple paved the way to living with autism.

Temple's clarifications remain to this day to be the most concrete and reliable source for me. Autism is a maze, and perhaps only someone who can articulate what it truly feels like can make some sense of it. Reported by Argusleader.com, Ms. Grandin recently spoke at Augustana College.She reiterated her message at Augustana: "Fear is the main emotion in autism".

I have always believed that autism is about control. Being the master of their own world, including everything from eye contact to tactile defensiveness is motivated by governing the fears of individuals with autism. It's about self protection, in my opinion.

The report continued:" The autistic mind is into detail. Build an area of strength," she said. But mundane matters can be overwhelming. She told her listeners that if someone released several cobras inside the auditorium, they'd all be constantly looking around for snakes as she spoke. Running water, loud noises and scratchy clothing all can set off similar alarm bells for the autistic."

I wrote Can you teach fear to your child with autism in order to address the real dangers in not recognizing peril. However re-teaching fear is quite another story. How do you eradicate a mental image of fear? How do you you dilute the power of the intangible? The report specified that " Grandin thinks the autistic can compensate, in part. "Social skills can be taught, but social-emotion relatedness may remain absent or weak,". Clearly, building trust for those on the spectrum is an imperative. It is the path to conquering fear.

Author: Robin Hausman Morris

Robin Hausman Morris is a National Examiner. You can see Robin's articles on Robin's Home Page.

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Tips on caring for a child with autism

Tips on caring for a child with autism

As doctors, families and schools learn more about autism, people living with autism have overcome obstacles to lead healthful, meaningful and productive lives.

However, a recent Easter Seals study found that parents of children with autism face a number of unique challenges. Nearly 80 percent are extremely or very concerned about their child's independence as an adult, compared to 32 percent of parents of typically developing children.

These parents also report they're "financially drowning," with 74 percent fearing their child will not have enough financial support when they die. Only 18 percent of parents with typically developing children share this same fear.

Fortunately, there are ways for parents of children with autism to ease their concerns. Easter Seals, the nation's largest nonprofit provider of autism services, offers these tips:

•Find programs. A basic rule for treating autism is the earlier the intervention, the better. There are a range of options for people of all ages. Generally, the best programs build on the strengths of the individual with autism and provide a structured environment and support.

•Plan ahead. Ease fears about the child's financial future by taking steps today. It's never too early to speak with a financial advisor about special-needs trusts and other options that could help care for a son or daughter later in life.

•Take personal time. Families can find respite by having a professional or a trained volunteer come to their home to provide support or by enrolling their child in a day or weekend program. This allows the parents to enjoy recreational, social or other important activities with siblings or with each other.

•Connect with families. Parents can attend an Autism Community Forum hosted by Easter Seals. The event brings families, community service groups and support services together to learn from one another as they look at the care options available for people with autism in the area.

The forums can be a good way to develop better support networks and ultimately improve care for people who have autism.

This article provided by North American Precis Syndicate Inc.

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Hand in hand with autistic kids

GAMAL Zahar, 18, taught himself to play the banjo. He hugs the banjo to his chest as he strums a tune. Although seemingly focused on his banjo, Gamal is also closely following the conversation in the room.

With him are Andrew Chew, 24, and Tan Seng Kit, 20. The lads sit patiently on their stools – being interviewed by the press is something they have to get used to as “stars”.

All three are autistic and will be performing at the Hand in Hand with the Stars concert, in which Chew and Tan will be drumming.

A group of about 10 people with autism, aged 12 and above, will be drumming at the concert. The lights in the theatre will be switched off and all the audience will see are the white gloves worn by the performers and the fluorescent drumsticks.

Practice makes perfect: (From left) Tan, Chew and Gamal practising for the concert.

The concert, to raise awareness and funds for Parents’ Resource for Autism (PR4A), will be held on July 3 and 4 from 8pm to 9.30pm, and on July 5 from 5pm to 6.30pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, KLCC Plenary Theatre.

The boys have been practising since March, not only at rehearsals with local musician Edwin Nathaniel but also at home.

Auditions were conducted to choose the youngsters who could grasp the basic rhythm patterns.

Because people with autism are very reliant on routines, helping the youngsters rehearse meant being very precise and detailed in the instructions. Nathaniel observes that the children now not only have their own parts, they also know their friends’ parts and sometimes remind their friends of missed cues.

As a bonus, the Aseana Percussion Band will also be on hand to ensure the audience has a stomping good time at the concert.

At the concert venue, there will also be an art exhibition by 15 autistic artists. It will feature about 60 pieces of art (paintings and clay).

The funds raised will go towards PR4A’s plan to set up centres in the Klang Valley, Ipoh, Penang and Malacca and to train parents in various forms of therapy.

Tickets for the Hand in Hand with the Stars concert are available from Ticketpro Malaysia / Ticket Hotline (03-7880 7999 / 03-7880 4992).

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Erasing Autism

Erasing Autism

Scientists are closing in on the genes linked to autism. So why is Ari Ne'eman so worried?

Claudia Kalb
NEWSWEEK
From the magazine issue dated May 25, 2009

It's spring in Washington, and Ari Ne'e-man, with his navy suit and leather brief-case on wheels, is in between his usual flurry of meetings. Ne'eman is a master networker, a guy you'd think was born in a campaign office and bred in the halls of the Capitol. He's fluent in policy-speak and interacts seamlessly with high-level officials (he's just had lunch with the acting vice chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) and inquisitive reporters alike. He's formal but sociable and has a well-timed sense of humor. He also has a problem with velvet. I knew this about Ne'eman—he'd mentioned it when we first started talking more than a year ago—but now, in a D.C. coffee shop, he gets into the sensory details. His father used to drive a car that had fuzzy velvet-like cushioning, and it made Ne'eman crazy to sit in it. "I'd wince because I'd think about how it would feel to get that under your fingernails," he says. I think I see him shudder at the memory.

Ari Ne'eman is 21 years old and has Asperger syndrome, a high-functioning diag-nosis on the wide-ranging autism spectrum. Ne'eman's velvet aversion is triggered somewhere deep in his brain, a brain that he happens to relish. He doesn't want anybody to mess with or, God forbid, cure his Asperger's. It's who he is, who he's always been. It's why he's had ob-sessive interests since toddlerhood. At 2½, he saw a dinosaur skeleton at New York's American Museum of Natural History and announced, "That's a pterodactyl." From there he fixated on baseball, reciting players' names and stats ad nauseam, whether or not anyone was listening—a behavior experts call perseveration. Later it was Constitutional law. His friend Ben DeMarzo remembers driving with Ne'eman and two other classmates one high-school weekend. DeMarzo and the others wanted to listen to music—the Beatles were a favorite—but Ne'eman had other plans. "Ari made us listen to Supreme Court oral arguments. It was brutal," DeMarzo tells me. He was outnumbered—how'd he win? I ask. DeMarzo laughs. "Ari always wins," he says.

He certainly puts up a fight. Ne'eman is officially studying political science at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, but he also runs the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, a nonprofit he founded in 2006, the year after he graduated from high school. The task he has taken on is daunting and controversial: he wants to change the way the world views autism. Autism is not a medical mystery that needs solving, he argues. It's a disability, yes, but it's also a different way of being, and "neurodiversity" should be accepted by society. Autistic people (he prefers this wording to "people with autism," a term many parents use, because he considers the condition intrinsic to a person's makeup) must be accommodated in the classroom and workplace and helped to live independently as adults—and he is pushing to make this happen for everyone on the spectrum. They should also be listened to. "We're having a nation-al conversation about autism without the voices of people who should be at the center of that conversation," he says.

Ne'eman's network has local chapters in 15 states, and he works closely with organizations like the EEOC and the American Association of People With Disabilities. Neurodiversity activists see their mission as a fight for civil rights, and Ne'eman and others are willing to stir un-rest. "Ari's very straightforward," says Lee Grossman, head of the Autism Society of America, who supports many of Ne'eman's efforts. "He tells it like it is from his perspective." Ne'eman has taken on powerful organizations, specifically Autism Speaks, the largest science and advocacy group in the country, be-cause he believes they rely on fearful stereotypes and focus their research too heavily on what causes autism as opposed to improving quality of life for autistic people today. Last year he helped stop an edgy "ransom notes" ad campaign created by New York University's Child Study Center to raise awareness about autism. One said, "We have your son" and are "driving him into a life of complete isolation." It was signed "Asperger Syndrome." Ne'eman was appalled. "There's a misperception that autism is some thief in the night that takes a normal child and places an autistic child in its place," he says. "That's not true."

The autism spectrum itself, however, is a universe with multiple galaxies, including nonverbal toddlers who bite themselves and college grads who can't tell the differ-ence between sarcasm and seriousness. This complexity leads to passionate and conflicting viewpoints. Not everybody stands behind Ne'eman, and some adamantly op-pose his views. One major area of contention: scientific research, which includes the hunt for autism genes.

I knew Ne'eman had a surprising outlook on this and figured he'd have something to say about the recent news that scientists have found common gene variants that may account for up to 15 percent of all autism cases. This is big in a disorder that varies so enormously from one individual to the next. Environmental factors also play a role, but if scientists can test for specific genes—most of which have yet to be discovered—they may be able to intervene much sooner to help kids. One day they might even find a cure. This is exciting for parents who want to understand the roots of the disorder. Therapies—some helpful, some shams—vie for their attention and their pocketbooks, and they'd welcome better, more targeted treatments. But the new genetic advances concern Ne'eman. He doesn't believe autism can be, or should be, cured. His ultimate fear is this: a prenatal test for autism, leading to "eugenic elimination." If a test is developed one day, it will be used, he says. And that means people like him might cease to exist.

When I press Ne'eman on genetic research—doesn't it have some merit?—he says he doesn't oppose it outright, but he believes scientists must consider the ethical implications of their work far more carefully. Already couples are testing embryos for diseases like Huntington's, then choosing to implant only the healthy ones. And who can blame them? But autism isn't a fatal condition. Should people without the disorder be allowed to judge the quality of life of someone who has it? "That is a message that the world doesn't want us here," says Ne'eman, "and it devalues our lives."

The prospect of no more Ari Ne'emans—whether you agree with him or not—is haunting. Termination of fetuses with Down syndrome is routine today; given the fear that autism inspires in parents, why wouldn't it follow? And what would our world be like without autism? The vast differences among individuals on the spectrum make the notion even thornier: will parents start demanding to know whether their fetus will be low- or high-functioning? But it's also impossible to ignore the parents who say they'd do anything to free their children from isolation and pain. Some feel so hopeless so much of the time, they do wonder in private if their children would have been better off not born. And who can blame them?

Ne'eman battles a strange kind of image problem: his critics accuse him of not really being autistic. His mother, Rina, is particularly sensitive about this. "People who see Ari today have no idea where he's been," she says. As a young child, Ne'eman was verbally precocious but socially challenged. "I didn't understand the people around me, and they didn't understand me," he says. He was bullied and ostracized—back then he didn't look at people; he flapped his hands and paced incessantly (he still does both today); he brought newspapers to elementary school as leisure reading. "I think the word 'freak' may have come up," he says. He was, at one point, segregated from his peers in a special-ed school. That led to struggles with depression and anxiety so severe he would pick at his face until it bled. I asked Ne'eman how he manages all the professional mingling he does today. Small talk makes him uncomfortable, but he's learned to play along. Still, none of it is easy. "You come out of a meeting and you've put on a mask, which involves looking people in the eye, using certain mannerisms, certain phrases," he says. "Even if you learn to do it in a very seamless sort of way, you're still putting on an act. It's a very ex-hausting act."

He remembers being taught in social-skills training that when people are happy they smile with all their teeth, and when they're sad they wear exaggerated frowns. "I was always wondering, 'Why is everybody around me neither happy or sad? They don't have emotions'," he says. When you're autistic, social interaction can be like a foreign language: no matter how fluent you become, you're never a native speaker. Katie Miller, a fellow activist, jokes that "Ari is the only autistic we know whose special interest and talent lies in networking." But, she says, "it didn't come naturally. He's learned it the way every-body else learns algebra." Ne'eman has a way of taming the stress he feels: he wears a tie because it puts a soothing pressure on his neck. "It's a good way of calming my anxiety," he says.

One of Ne'eman's latest efforts is a new public-service announcement called "No Myths," which he helped create with the Dan Marino Foundation, a funder of autism research. In it, Ne'eman appears in a red sweater and tie along with others on the spectrum, including a man who speaks through a communication device. "Our futures have not been stolen," Ne'eman says. "Our lives are not tragedies." The message is clear: We stand before you. Don't make us go away.

URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/197813

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The Autism Train Journey

As a father who has 2 sons suffering from Autism, has make me see the world and life in different context. First thing is that I have already discounted my life, ambition and happiness; to be replaced by dedication to bring about better quality of life for my two sons. What is the life journey of a autism family? The way I see it, The Autism Journey is like those of a train ride with destination uncertain. The destination is this context will be the death of the parent (father or mother). In here, I will just simple using me, a father as an example.


The Beginning
Once I found out about my sons condition, The Autism Train Journey Begin! We step into the train ride and going toward the first station stop. We meet a lot of people in the train and most people does not know what the hacked is happen to my sons, so do I? I am totally lost and just listen to everyone and try every possible remedies suggestion by all the passengers of the train.



The Stations' Stop
At every station, some passenger has gone for good (death) and some new one arrive. The older passenger has get used to my sons and they all show and shower us with love and care. There are those who gave us the hard time, but what the hack I cannot make everyone happy, right?


More Stations' Stop
After a few stations stops and goes, we get use to the situation with annoying new passenger, loving and caring old passenger, bad and heartless old passenger and we also missed those who left us for good in last station stop. They are gone for good!


The Final Destination
Then we start to think about where are we going? Where is our destination. After a much soul searching I realized that next station stop could be my final destination. A final destination not about autism cured or my sons can be independent living alone. The final destination is about I am leaving the train and left both my sons alone in the train ride. They still have a long and lonely ride ahead.

It really sound scary when I imagine them alone in this ride without me holding them, protecting them and loving them. Will the other passenger kind and loving enough to take over my role?

During the ride until now, I have seen some good, bad and "Oh My God" kind of passengers. How then can I leave the ride knowing they will not be in good hand.


Planning
After I realized that the next stop could be my final destination. I start to do the following: -

• Love and get to know every passengers as much as possible.
• Tell them about autism and my sons.
• Share with them my griefs and joys.
• Always live my life, spend the time and loving my sons as if next station stop is my last, My Final Destination!
• Plan financially, they have the money to pay for their ride until Their Final Destination Too
  

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Beautiful Minds: Stephen Wiltshire

A human camera? I am totally speechless..
Watch the video and you will know why..




















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Autism Diet

Published: May 8, 2009 (Article by nbc13.com )




There is no cure for autism, but there are lots of therapies and strategies that can improve the abilities and overall well-being of autistic children.

One strategy that works for some children is to change what they’re eating.

A new diet for an 8 year old autistic boy in georgia, named Justin, has improved his life.

“His language skyrocketed, his digestion completely improved. He was able to focus, I think focus a whole lot better in school and able to express himself,“ says his mother, Susan Delaine.

Justin’s diet is completely free of casin: no milk products or gluten.

“You can’t have any wheat, rye, barley or oats,“ says another mother, Jennifer Harris.

It’s not an easy diet to follow.

Many times it means shopping in stores that specialize in organic foods.

It means becoming a food detective.

“A lot of product labels will list white flour, but white flour is just bleached wheat flour, so you still can’t have that. There’s about seven different words for wheat. Triticale, durum, emer, fo, farina, semilima, so there’s things that confuse you when you’re first starting out,“ says Harris.

Justin’s mother began changing his diet about six years ago.

She few recipes, so created her own and then put them in a cookbook to help parents of other autistic children.

“Balancing the Bowl” is now updated and in its second edition.

And the entire Delaine family is now gluten-free.

And Justin’s happier and healthier.

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Autism Clues

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I Dreamed a Dream

47 Year old Susan Boyle wows the judges with her performance in the auditions for Britains Got Talent, singing I dreamed a dream from Les Miserables.

Watch her here, and remember to have a tissue box around. Please do share how you feel when you watch this video!

Here are the Lyrics:


I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high,
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving.

Then I was young and unafraid
When dreams were made and used,
And wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung,
No wine untasted.

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hopes apart
As they turn your dreams to shame.

And still I dream he'll come to me
And we will live our lives together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms
We cannot weather...

I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I'm living
So different now from what it seems
Now life has killed
The dream I dreamed.

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Quote of the Week [20 April 2008]

How – When – Where
By John Oxenham

It is not so much WHERE you live,
As HOW, and WHY, and WHEN you live,
That answers in the affirmative,
Or maybe in the negative,
The question- Are you fit to live?


It is not so much WHERE you live,
As HOW you live, and whether good
Flows from you through your neighbourhood.


And WHY you live, and whether you
Aim high and noblest ends pursue,
And keep Life brimming full and true.

And WHEN you live, and whether Time
Is at its nadir or its prime,
And whether you descend or climb.


It is not so much WHERE you live,
As whether while you live you live
And to the world your highest give,
And so make answer positive
That you are truly fit to live.

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Healing Autism With Horses

Healing Autism With Horses

Erin Trieb for The New York Times  “The Horse Boy” author Rupert Isaacson and his son Rowan in Elgin, Tex.

 

 

In today’s New York Times, reporter Motoko Rich writes about a new book, “The Horse Boy,” that chronicles a father’s trip to Mongolia to ride horses and visit shamans as part of an effort to heal his son’s autism. Ms. Rich asked several top autism experts whether the book offers important insights or false hope for families coping with autism. Here’s what they said: Click Here



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Teens With Autism Learn To Navigate Social Situations

Teens With Autism Learn To Navigate Social Situations
By Michelle Diament
April 13, 2009

Interacting with peers can be one of the most challenging aspects of having autism. But a new class is designed to help teenagers with the disorder do just that.

The class called Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills, or PEERS, teaches students how to identify peers who are likely to be good friends and how to make friends with them. Instructors help students learn how to appropriately enter and exit conversations, how to be good hosts, how to deal with negative reputations and how to deal with bullying and arguments.

Classes feature role-playing and coaching from instructors. Students are also assigned homework, such as inviting a friend over.

Parents attend a separate class during the teens’ 90 minute sessions over the course of 12 weeks. During these sessions, parents learn how to encourage and support the skills their kids are taught.

Teens with autism who participated in PEERS significantly improved their social skills and their peer interactions as compared with other teens with autism who had not taken the class, according to a a study published this month in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. After completing PEERS teens and their parents reported having more frequent get-togethers with friends and stronger friendships than before.

“How do you have a successful get-together with someone? How do you go up to a group of teens and join their conversation? What do you say as a comeback when someone teases you? Without these core social skills, it becomes very difficult for teenagers to make and keep friends,” said Elizabeth Laugeson, clinical instructor of psychiatry at UCLA who led the study.

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A Gallop Toward Hope: One Family’s Adventure in Fighting Autism

By MOTOKO RICH - The New York Times

When Rupert Isaacson decided to take his autistic son, Rowan, on a trip to Mongolia to ride horses and seek the help of shamans two years ago, he had a gut instinct that the adventure would have a healing effect on the boy. Mr. Isaacson’s instinct was rewarded after the trip, when some of Rowan’s worst behavioralissues, including wild temper tantrums, all but disappeared.

Now the publisher of Mr. Isaacson’s book about the journey, “The Horse Boy,” has a similar instinct about the market potential of his story, and is hoping for its own happy ending.

Little, Brown & Company, which released “The Horse Boy” on Tuesday, has a lot riding on its success: the publisher paid more than $1 million in an advance to Mr. Isaacson before he and his family had even taken their Mongolian trip.

Michael Pietsch, publisher of Little, Brown, said booksellers had already placed orders high enough to justify a first printing of 150,000 copies.

“It just touched so many points of interest — helping to heal an autistic child, traveling under difficult circumstances,” Mr. Pietsch said. “Most of all, I felt this was a story entirely driven by the chances you’ll take for love, and I felt, who’s not going to want to read this story when they hear the outlines of it?”

“The Horse Boy” traces Rowan’s early difficulties with “demonic” tantrums, speech delays and incontinence. The only thing that seemed to help, Mr. Isaacson discovered, was riding horses. On horseback Rowan was calm, gave verbal directives and expressed joy.

Then Mr. Isaacson, who had previously written about the Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa and witnessed several shamanic ceremonies, took his son to a convention of traditional healers. For a few days Rowan improved.


Mr. Isaacson, a travel writer, wondered where he could combine horses and shamanic healing, and landed upon Mongolia. After some intensive Google searching and heated discussion with his wife, Kristin Neff, an associate professor of human development and culture at the University of Texas, the family decided to make the journey. A young filmmaker agreed to record the trip.

Mr. Isaacson also decided to pitch a book about the journey. His 37-page proposal outlined an itinerary and his hopes for Rowan’s healing.

Mr. Pietsch said that it was rare for the publisher to take on what he described as “prospective adventures.”

“Our usual response is, ‘Go have the adventure, and then we’ll decide,’ ” Mr. Pietsch said. In this case he determined “that regardless of the outcome in Mongolia, we thought he would write a very moving and interesting and dramatic book.”

During the auction of the book two years ago, Elizabeth Sheinkman, Mr. Isaacson’s agent in London, stoked interest by linking to a YouTube video of Mr. Isaacson and Rowan on horseback. Ms. Sheinkman went on to sell the book in Britain and 16 other countries.

In a telephone interview from his home near Austin, Tex., Mr. Isaacson said he wrote the kind of book he wanted to read when Rowan’s condition was first diagnosed, showing that even families with autistic children could lead a life of adventure. “I knew if somebody had put out a story like this when I was first facing the diagnosis,” Mr. Isaacson said, “I would have been to a large degree reassured.”

“The Horse Boy” follows the family’s four-week trek through Mongolia, riding on horseback or in a van with leopard-skin seats, meeting with shamans along the way. Mr. Isaacson candidly expressed misgivings about the difficult journey, recounting setbacks when Rowan, who was 5 at the time, exploded in tantrums or refused to get on a horse.

Much of the trip was captured on film by Michel Orion Scott, whose documentary about the experience, “Over the Hills and Far Away,” will be released in September. Mr. Isaacson paid for most of the production costs.

Mr. Isaacson has optioned feature film rights for “The Horse Boy” to Mark Ordesky, an executive producer of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and Ileen Maisel, an executive producer of the “Golden Compass.” Mr. Isaacson is writing the screenplay.

In writing about Rowan’s experiences, Mr. Isaacson is careful to avoid the word “cure,” but writes of an amazing “recovery” and “healing.” That has some prospective readers wary. Sharon Fennell, a mother of three in Belfast, Northern Ireland, whose 8-year-old son is autistic, said she had read newspaper excerpts and reviews in Britain, where the book came out last month.

She questioned whether Rowan’s progress could be attributed to what happened in Mongolia or to just typical changes that all children go through. “To make this story more engaging, it has to be portrayed as something miraculous and fantastical, because ordinary, everyday, slow-plodding progress does not read so well,” Ms. Fennell said.

Doctors who have worked with autistic patients say a child can make big leaps in development, and that stories like Mr. Isaacson’s can provide inspiration to families.

“I think we’ve all seen these alternative or augmentative therapies that have done wonders for given children,” said Dr. Sarah Spence, a pediatric neurologist specializing in autism at the National Institute of Mental Health.

But others warn that such examples are not tested by science. Dr. Paul A. Offit, chief of infectious diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and author of “Autism’s False Prophets,” said anecdotal examples of recovery like that in “The Horse Boy” could give parents “false hope” and lead them to spend thousands of dollars trying to replicate an experience without any scientific proof that it would help.

Mr. Isaacson said that he and his wife had used part of his book advance to start a ranch where other autistic children could ride horses. But he added that the approach he chronicled in “The Horse Boy” was tailored to Rowan’s personality.

“The book isn’t really saying that shamanism cures autism or horses cure autism; it’s saying we found a way,” said Mr. Isaacson, who took Rowan, now 7, to Namibia last year to meet again with shamans. “You don’t have to get on a plane and go to Mongolia. It’s just that our particular story was that.”

Mr. Pietsch of Little, Brown said he hoped “The Horse Boy” would find a broader audience. In a brochure sent to booksellers, the book is described as combining “the adventure and optimism of ‘Three Cups of Tea’ with the powerful connection between man and animal that readers loved in ‘Marley and Me.’ ”

Booksellers have responded strongly to the marketing campaign, which included DVDs, YouTube trailers and lunches with Mr. Isaacson. “We feel that it’s really got the best-seller potential,” said Bob Wietrak, a vice president for merchandising at Barnes & Noble.

Janet Bailey, the buyer for Barbara’s Bookstores, an independent chain mostly in the Chicago area, said she had committed to the title “very aggressively” even though she had not read it. She was particularly taken with the book’s cover, which shows Rowan and Mr. Isaacson in a triumphant moment on the back of a horse on the Mongolian steppe. “It’s inspiring and uplifting and it’s about horses,” she added.

To promote the book, the Autism Society of America, an advocacy group, will send representatives to Mr. Isaacson’s readings in several cities.

Mr. Isaacson is already working on a new proposal for a book tentatively titled “The Gifts of Autism.” Mr. Isaacson said that Rowan himself had started to write. “The next film and the next book will probably have a lot of input from Rowan in it,” Mr. Isaacson said.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/15/books/15horse.html

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