July 24, 2008

Teens completely recover from autism

San Jose Autism Treatment Center proves children can recover from autism

Parents and special education teachers who take care of autistic children, may want to attend a controversial documentary called “Recovered: Journeys Through the Autism Spectrum and Back.”

The film by the Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Inc. will be screened Saturday, Aug. 16, at 3:30 p.m., at the Campbell Community Center, 1 West Campbell Ave.. It is a view into the lives of four families who were told to give up hope and institutionalize their autistic children years ago. It chronicles the road these four children took starting at the deep end of the autism spectrum. The story ends in full recovery.

Their story is told by Dr. Doreen Granpeesheh, the founder and executive director of the Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Inc., She and her staff developed and administered treatment programs for each of the children using Applied Behavior Analysis techniques and documented the children’s’ stories and progress.

One in 150 American children have autism. U.S Health officials and researchers say this number is growing. “Many people don’t believe it is possible to recover from Autism. Our intention in providing proof of recovery and in identifying a course of action toward that goal is only to bring hope and determination to those families who feel it is in the best interest of their child to learn new skills in order to better access the rewards of life.

“We feel every child has the right to be healthy, to be taught the skills they need to interact appropriately with their peers and to be allowed to demonstrate their strengths, instead of fight their weaknesses. We feel confident we have found the path to make this a reality, ” Granpeesheh said.