On this episode of True Life you'll meet three young people who are doing everything they can to battle their Autism and live life to the fullest.
This made me Cry~ I have three boys with Autism.. One very severe to a middle verbal ... I would love for my oldest to be able to communicate... This gives me hope~ :)) TY (Merced CA)
This is untrue it is still on the autism spectrum.
Elijah is so cute :)
jeremy is such a sweet guy his awesome i hope the best for him
Jonathan is a sweet guy!, and very very talented. Elijah is cool, he reminds me of Shia Labouf :) and i love the way that jeremy had the power to try the effort and communicate with his peers. :) love these guys
Asperger's actually isn't austism.....it's more of a socially awkward disorder. It's not near as bad as autism.
That neurologist with Jonathan pissed me off when Jonathan had one of his episodes. "Jonathan, are you a baby?" WTF. He's not acting like a baby. He can't control it.
I am a professional who works with individuals diagnosed with Autism and I teach a course in critical thinking & skepticism at a state university in Texas. I hate to be a stick in the mud but the words expressed by the individual being assisted to communicate using the lightwriter are not likely his own and are likely those of his caregiver! This method of assisted communication is called "facilitated communication" (FC). FC has been thoroughly debunked in multiple studies using double blind preparations. Families, caregivers, and individuals with intellectual disabilities have actually been hurt by FC! Moreover, no one has a right to communicate for another person; unfortunately, FC does exactly that! If you are skeptical of my own claims about the use of FC in this episode, watch it again and look at Jeremy's eyes while he is typing. He is often not looking at the keyboard. Now look at his mother's eyes, she does not take them off of the keyboard, and she often moves the keyboard so Jeremy's fingers land on or near the letter she is expecting him to type next. Ask yourself whether or not Jeremy, or anybody, could type coherent messages on a keyboard without looking at it. I expected MTV to do a bit more research on the subject of Autism treatment before promoting a method of communication that all of the scientific evidence says doesn't work and often leads to harm. Way to go MTV!!!
As a parent with a child with autism who has very limited language and communication, this episode was touching. Watching Jeremy gives me joy, but watching his friends gives me hope. If you ever have the opportunity to get to know someone with autism, they will forever change the way you look at and live life. Jeremy proves something that has been known by parents of nonverbal kids for some time.....Not being able to speak is not the same as not having anything to say.
I agree with Jessica, Kennan and Christa. By the way Jessica you said "hoes" instead shoes. I'm sorry if I embarrassed you.
I was really touched by the episode. Each of the boys struggled to find a way to be themselves and to show that inside of them, despite their struggles with communication, that they are just normal teenage boys. I know all of us face the struggle to be ourselves and to find a way to it in, even without a disability, and I applaud their enormous courage and the goodness in each of their hearts. I know I saw this episode as a rerun, and I hope each of the boys are happy and well.
I'm glad that they have shows like this.. to show people what people with disabilities go threw on a daily bases.
Im not a comedy fan, but that american idiot joke was funny. xD I wonder if mtv reads these comments. Well, mtv should do an episode on people with severe social anxiety. Just an idea! I dont get along with people, and such, and would like to see how others would do in my hoes.
As a parent of a child with a child like Elijah, this was amazing to see. Partly because I feel it can give me a possible glimps into what could be to come and partly because it really puts into prespective how blessed I am. Blessed because one I have a brilliant child who dispite the obsticals that will have to be overcome there is no doubt in my mind that he is headed for greatness. And then I'm blessed that its as "mild" (not the right word but it will suffice) as it is and not nearly as "bad" (again wrong word but it will suffice) as it could be. Jeremy made me cry, but not in a negtive way. I truly beleive that he understands better than most of us "normal" people do, unfourntally he's locked away in his mind. The lightwriter was an amazing thing to watch him adapt to. It gave him the voice I'm sure he'd been longing for for so long. And to see the interaction that his peers gave him was that much more amazing. I love the way the show adressed indirectly that every case is diffrent, because they are. There are many similarties but no two cases are ever going to be alike. Great job! I would love to see a follow up show!
i think its incredible that he can write out what he is thinking and wants to say through that litewriter
wow i cant believe how smart jeremy actually is. its hard to tell whats really going through a person with autism's mind, or if they are able to understand at all. but this showed me that they do understand what is happening around them.
I am a parent of an autistic child much like Jon. My Son is almost 6 and was only diagnosed a year ago. Its so hard to see what my son may have to go through as he gets older.
Jeremy's story made me cry. I feel like such an ingrate because I know I have it so much easier than him and I basically take that for granted. I think he is an amazing person and very brave -- and I hope he's been doing great since this episode was filmed. Jeremy -- you are really an inspiration, as are all the other young men featured in this show.
