Louder Than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism

There are books out right now that speak of the Autism perspective but none from someone as well known and vocal as Jenny McCarthy. Her book, as well as her celebrity status, will reach a significant portion of the population who may not know what autism really is. They might know a friend or family member who has a child with autism but does not have enough first hand experience to know what that caregiver is going through on a daily basis, let alone know how a child with autism processes information. It will also bring light to the many many books out there by parents who have been through the same struggles (older books like Judy/Sean Barron, Mary Callahan, etc).

I suppose it goes without saying these types of reviews also become a sounding board for many parents, myself included to let others know they are not alone... the average person in public cannot identify a seemingly quiet child (i.e. flat affect) as having autism because of the short period of time they are in contact. It does not mean this child is the same way all the time. People have actually asserted that they could handle our child if it were in their hands since they spent all of an hour with them! The first time my neighbors knew the extent of my child's behavior was when I had to physically remove my child from the house and outside so he would not slam into furniture during a full blown tantrum and hurt himself. He screamed so loudly that grown men came running out of their homes a block away to see if my child was in danger. Trust me, Jenny is not exaggerating any part of her story when I tell you we have experienced rages in our son, especially when something has been introduced into his gut, be it food or medicine; he seems to be unable to remove from his system and can stay for days, even weeks causing anguish for him.

This book isn't about answers or easy cures that worked for Evan McCarthy; every child with autism is different. For us, we knew we had to figure out a dietary balance for his brain, gut and severe multiple allergies and a proper early intervention program. He no longer looks blankly at a wall, stim for hours or sleeps 4-5 hours at a time. We still have a long way to go with education and diet, but we have a little boy who has shown improvement in socialization with his family and teachers because he is feeling so much better.

As Jenny says in the end, this is a book about FAITH, having faith in yourself as a parent to do the best of your ability in seeking help for your child's health and well being. Some male readers (i.e. fathers) may be put off by the disheartening tone she has towards the father of her son for most of the book but we have to remember it is not directed at fathers in general. This is a telling of her life experience so it is rather autobiographical. I highly recommend for people, who are getting this book for parents of children with autism, to read it first before passing it along... so many parents already know what needs to be done, but they need their friends and family to understand too.

I am the grandmother of a child with high functioning autism who was damaged by vaccines, and who has made incredible strides forward by biomedical interventions like a gluten-free diet, digestive enzymes, food supplements, and tender loving care. Jenny's story echoes that of many many mothers who were told there was nothing to be done except for therapies. Providing stressful therapies for a child who is physically sick is not always the most successful way to proceed, and in some cases it can be extremely unfair to the child. Autism is a neurobiological condition. Two of my grandsons have documented mercury poisoning...some families have a harder time processing tiny amounts of mercury. When my six year old grandson went on a gluten-free diet one month before his fifth birthday, he was toilet trained in two days. We have been laughed at, the schools and medical professionals have obstructed our progress in some cases instead of helping, and the information in Jenny's book NEEDS to come out. By the way, my PhD is in biology and I worked as a Research Associate for 6.5 years in the nutrition division of a major university. The biology behind these interventions is sound. There are strong political forces trying to keep this information from coming out. It is interesting that the public will listen more easily to a celebrity than to people who are educated in these areas but the important thing is what Jennie says: LISTEN TO THE MOTHERS! (parents, grandparents).

Jenny's latest book, "Louder Than Words: A Mother's Journey In Healing Autism," is a book full of heartbreak, as Jenny relates the story of how her son was misdiagnosed and how she had to fight the health care system to get the right diagnosis and the right care for him. But more importantly it's a book full of hope, as Jenny tells how behavioral therapy, diet and supplements have helped her son immensely. It's a book I highly recommend to anyone with concerns about autism and any Jenny fan. It's an awesome read.

While I don't have children yet, I wanted to read this because firstly I like Jenny, and secondly, Austism isn't something I understand well and thought that a mother of a child with it, would have a good angle on this horrible condition. I was really moved reading her story (which must be so similar to many many families out there) and thought she wrote well about her own situation. She writes something very profound and true in the forward, saying - "When your child is diagnosed with cancer, neighbors stop by your home bringing pre-cooked meals, hugs and support, but when your child is diagnosed with autism, families who see you in the supermarket will slip away down another aisle". I thought that summed up clearly the way life must be for so many people. People are scared of the unknown.
She had what she called Mommy instinct when Evan, who never slept in, was not up at 7am one day. She found him in his crib convulsing and struggling to breathe. The hospital called it a simple seizure instead of looking further into possibilities. Her second wave of instinct that something was wrong was when another seizure occured that was very different to the first. His heart stopped yet Jenny instinctively knew everything would be OK. After more and more seizures, knowing something wasn't right, she was told it was epilepsy and was discharged from the hospital. She stuck to her guns and believed it wasn't epilepsy and went to a top neurologist who right off the bat said that Evan has autism and she knew he was right.
She writes very candidly about seeking cures and all the trials and tribulations with the diagnosis etc. And while she never mentions Jim Carey directly, she refers to him as the cute funny guy. It's so interesting and informative and must be very comforting to families who have austistic children. For that alone, I highly recommend it.

I read this book, and found it very inspiring. I, myself, had a stroke at the age of 5. I could re-see my mother in Jenny, brave, courageous, tenacious.
I, now, since 25 yrs,am a special ed teacher. And yes, I worked i L.A. with autistic kides.As a matter iof fact, my first job was at the age of 20 yrs old, with an autistic girl:Nancy. I'll never forget her.
I applaude Jenny, the mother, and all the parents of handicapped children. You' re doing a fantasic job!