When my son Clint was 10 years old he was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. Up until that time some of the professionals at the school said they were afraid to tell me they thought he was Autistic. They were wrong. I was so glad to have a diagnosis because up until then I had been fumbling in the dark. I listened to the doctors and the teachers who told me to put him on Ritalin and on Lithium and every other drug you can think of. We tried them all. It was obvious to me that they were not what he needed. Thank goodness for the diagnosis. Once I knew what was wrong we worked hard to overcome it! Clint graduated from High School and started college at The University of Tennessee. I had promised him that things would be better for him at the university but sadly life was not! The Disability Department did not know anything about Asperger's and thought I was trying to pull a fast one on them by asking for him to have extra time to take his tests and to do his work on the computer. Even though he had scored high on the ACT test and they had to accept him, they wanted him retested because they didn't believe he was Autistic. He took Science classes and wanted to be a doctor. He could name every bone and muscle in the body by their Latin name. He studied Japanese and Latin and made an A in College Chemistry! He became a licensed massage therapist and was doing great when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2006. After 2 stem cell transplants at Vanderbilt Hospital and several rounds of chemo he was pronounced terminal. He passed away February 15, 2008. At his service many of his friends were unaware that he was Autistic. He had come so far and done so well. His friends and family started a foundation called The Clinton T Walker Foundation Inc. We have just finished the 7th World Autism Walk.

Anonymous
knoxville, TN