Autism and Parents Searching for Answers

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are exactly that, a spectrum of disorders. Those that suffer from autism can range from high functioning Aspergers Syndrome to incredibly low functioning full blown regressive autism. Add and AdHd are also considered to be a part of the spectrum. Since the 1930s when the disorder was first diagnosed by Dr. Leo Kanner to the 70s when Dr. Bettleheim coined the term "refrigerator moms" to describe the "mental" disorder as that arising from unloving mothers, the disorder has intrigued many doctors and researchers. The common belief among the autism community now, is that ASDs are a bio medical, systemic disorder as opposed to the former theory that the disorder was psychiatric in nature.

My son is also a victim of this disorder and my wife and I have worked tirelessly to help him recover. Despite the fact that those in mainstream medicine clearly state that this is, an impossibility, our son is nearly 60% recovered. While we are both very active in the autism community, our first concern is helping our son. This was the primary reason for my attending a small presentation at Dr. Mayer Eisenstein´s Home First Clinics in Rolling Meadows, Illinois that featured the father and son team of autism researchers; Dr. Mark and his son David Geier.

Dr. Geier is a geneticist and researcher that has worked for the Institutes of medicine and the CDC and holds the belief that the predominant cause of autism is the ethyl mercury in the vaccines. He has studied this theory relentlessly and is quite convincing. He also believes that a number of those suffering from autism have a high level of testosterone in their bodies (which is where many of the violent and anti-social behaviors reminiscent of autism come from) and that a drug called Lupron can drastically reduce this level and help these children.

Along with myself and approximately 100 other parents attending the presentation, there was a Chicago Tribune reporter in the audience. As the Geiers concluded their talk, this reporter came up to me to inquire if I had a child with autism or if I was using or was considering using Lupron. My response that made it into the May 21st edition of the front page of the Chicago Tribune with a sub head line was: Boys father asks: "Will it affect his masculinity" Recently at the Rolling Meadows clinic, Curt Linderman Sr. of Galesburg, Ill., said that he was torn about giving Lupron to his 7-year-old son. The boy was on the no-dairy, no-wheat diet and was doing pretty well, attending school in a regular classroom with the help of a special aide. He had some issues with socialization but wasn´t aggressive.

If blood tests showed the boy had high testosterone, the family would consider Lupron. Still, Linderman worried about the long term implications of suppressing his son´s hormones. "Will it affect his masculinity?" he said quietly. "I want him to be normal. I want him to have what every other child will have- a family, kids, marriage."

Immediately after this section pertaining to my short interview, the reporter goes on to state that endocrinologists say that I have every right to be concerned. The article was essentially a hatchet job, with the front page headline stating: AUTISM: ´Miracle" called junk science. This was literally an attack on those parents, like myself, that are simply trying everything we can to help our children. Make no mistake, Lupron is a drug that is used in pedophiles and serial rapists to "chemically" castrate them and is not a treatment to be taken lightly and I am thankful that my son isn´t aggressive or violent and therefore doesn´t need this treatment.

However, there are a number of parents in this country that have tried everything else and their child still tears the doors off the hinges, punches holes through the walls, strikes his or hers parents or siblings and is unable to be taken out into public. For these parents, of whom many are dear friends of mine, this is a "miracle drug". Who are these researchers and doctors that were quoted in this Tribune article, many of whom have actually ´caused´ autism through their over-zealous belief in vaccinating every single child, for judging parents that they have given no hope to through "traditional" medicine?

While this epidemic of autism continues to rise, main stream doctors have offered little help or hope to the autism community. What little relief used is psychotropic drugs that do as much or more damage than the Lupron that they continue to call ´junk´ science. While these doctors speak about messing with a child´s hormones through the prescribing of Lupron, many doctors are prescribing Risperodal which is now causing young boys (a young as four) to grow female breasts. So much so that many of these poor children have had to actually undergo mastectomies!

I truly believe that those in mainstream medicine will do anything to protect their holy grail called vaccinations, even discourage parents from seeking treatments that will help their child. After all, once it is revealed that vaccines have been the cause of this epidemic, they will have no credibility left and the lawsuits will begin in earnest. From the tone of this article and many others like it across this country, I can honestly say that it seems as if true investigative journalism within the mainstream media, be it print or television, is a thing of the past. The bankrupt newspapers and the advertising dollar addicted television stations are literally given the information that we are to be spoon fed and unfortunately, too many of us aren´t paying attention.

While I was not misquoted in this article, the context of the article certainly didn´t represent my stance on this issue. Given the remainder of the article, there is little doubt that this was deliberate throughout and severely undermined a segment of science that is searching for the answers and has already found many.

Make no mistake, as the processed food and the pharmaceutical industries (to include the ever increasing mandated vaccine schedule set by the U.S. Government) continue to poison more children, more parents will take the very same stand that my family is taking. Right now in the state of Illinois, 1 in 5 boys have a learning disability. This was unheard of merely a generation ago. What changed? Medicine changed! Doctors used to be concerned about their patients, now they listen to a parent or teacher that simply states that "little jimmy just doesn´t wanna pay attention" and the first thing they do is prescribe poison prescriptions to turn little jimmy into an automaton.

The mandated vaccine schedule was 6 vaccines during my childhood… now it is a combined total of 64 -83 vaccines by the time a child reaches adulthood and 38 by the time they hit kindergarten! Autism and a great number of other chronic diseases that would normally affect the elderly are now striking our children at an alarming rate. The Chicago tribune article is yet another example of the complete selling out of America. As a youngster I wanted to be a journalist or a lawyer, because they fought for the underdog and the down trodden. They were the defenders of our democracy. Now there´s little to believe in except the reality that you have personally been forced into and unfortunately, those that believe in their doctors and the media will never truly believe until they have been thrust into my world.

Curt Linderman Sr. is married and has four children; his youngest suffers from vaccine induced regressive autism. He is the president of the National Autism Assoc. of W. Central Illinois, a writer for Autism File Magazine and the editor of their website. He is the creator of www.autismtodayonline.com and the North American Advertising director for Autism File USA. He hosts a daily live radio show called "Linderman Live!" with his wife on Autism One Radio.