My Nonprofit Reviews

I was recently at the wedding of a good friend. Her 15 year old son conducted the ceremony. He had recovered completely from autism at 10 years old, following several years of a Son-Rise Program, and having still been very autistic at 9 years old.

I’ve personally been volunteering for over 2 years in a Son-Rise Program for a 9 year old girl who’s original diagnosis was severe autism. Now she’s high functioning. She is excited to interact with people. She can now play happily for hours with friends. Last Christmas she participated in a ballet for 4 consecutive days in front of an audience of thousands.

Last week I read a letter from a Son-Rise father who’s 10 year old son has made so many improvements in the last year, including that he’s now using the toilet independently, and sleeping through the night. Can you imagine the impact of these two things alone, for a family dealing with a special needs child who’s growing closer to adulthood?

I tell these stories to highlight the value that the Son-Rise Program (otherwise known as the Autism Treatment Center of America) has created for hundreds of thousands of families around the world over the last few decades. These families have discovered hope, happiness, and achieved reduction in their child’s autism, and in some cases, complete recovery. The number of parents attending Son-Rise Programs continues to increase. The Son-Rise Program has persevered since the 80s in the face of skepticism from autism groups and the medical and professional community, due to their claim that autism is a recoverable condition, and perhaps due to the strong focus on attitude over techniques, which is a paradigm shift from the way our culture currently operates.

The first studies demonstrating the effectiveness of the Son-Rise Program are starting to come out (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0021992413000518), as well as studies suggesting that autism is a recoverable condition (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=is-it-possible-to-recover-from-autism). The number of parents and professionals attending Son-Rise Program training has increased in recent years, and is likely to increase further now that Son-Rise can be considered an evidence-based program. The Son-Rise Program needs additional funding to provide scholarships to parents who haven’t got the financial resources to pay for programs, and to train new teachers to meet the increasing demand for services. If you’re looking to volunteer or donate, please consider this organization.

Finally, I strongly suggest to all parents and people dealing with autism in a loved one: Consider the Son-Rise Program. To other organizations and professionals dealing with autism: Take a look at the Son-Rise Program and consider aligning your approach more closely with Son-Rise Program attitude and techniques.

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