stem cell treatment for autism

Without any plausible cause-effect route or scientific efficacy testing which rules out the placebo effect and attribution of random improvements in some patients to the treatment itself (which is what most anecdotes do), you are giving potentially dangerous medicine for at best a slim hope and at worst a belief sold to you by a profiteering snake oil seller.

I believe in neurodevelopmental programs, stimulating demand on the brain and attempting to teach it to normalise the sensory inputs to a level where the ASD person can cope with everyday situations.  Love, praise, encouragement, and teacher / caregivers / parents who meet the child where they are currently at are crucial.

This is obviously much harder for those who are low functioning, and for NT carers of low functioning ASD kids in particular.  But in my opinion it is about getting the best outcome for the person you have in front of you. 

My son's ASD is part of him, it gives him some of the best elements of his character and it provides him with joy not available to NT people.  It also brings challenges and difficulties.  I would love to remove the second, but not at the cost of the first.  I strongly believe that ASD is a difference, not necessarily a disability.  Many of the problems leading to day to day struggles can be overcome with sensory therapy, intentional teaching about social interaction, and patience and acceptance from peers.  Again, this is easier to say for high functioning ASD people, and there are more struggles for low functioning people - but I'm afraid I'm quite offended by the idea that autism itself is something "bad" which should be "fixed" rather than a different way of being.

To me it's like trying to make everyone male because being female is "different". We could correct all those tricky differences instead of dealing with the possibility of diversity.  Yes there are some biological annoyances involved in being female, but there are also some wonderful positives. Happily, women have the benefit of being a majority of the population, and it is not generally suggested that we should "fix" them, whereas ASD people are a minority it is common to hear this view.

*rant over*

Without any plausible cause-effect route or scientific efficacy testing which rules out the placebo effect and attribution of random improvements in some patients to the treatment itself (which is what most anecdotes do), you are giving potentially dangerous medicine for at best a slim hope and at worst a belief sold to you by a profiteering snake oil seller.

I believe in neurodevelopmental programs, stimulating demand on the brain and attempting to teach it to normalise the sensory inputs to a level where the ASD person can cope with everyday situations.  Love, praise, encouragement, and teacher / caregivers / parents who meet the child where they are currently at are crucial.

This is obviously much harder for those who are low functioning, and for NT carers of low functioning ASD kids in particular.  But in my opinion it is about getting the best outcome for the person you have in front of you. 

My son's ASD is part of him, it gives him some of the best elements of his character and it provides him with joy not available to NT people.  It also brings challenges and difficulties.  I would love to remove the second, but not at the cost of the first.  I strongly believe that ASD is a difference, not necessarily a disability.  Many of the problems leading to day to day struggles can be overcome with sensory therapy, intentional teaching about social interaction, and patience and acceptance from peers.  Again, this is easier to say for high functioning ASD people, and there are more struggles for low functioning people - but I'm afraid I'm quite offended by the idea that autism itself is something "bad" which should be "fixed" rather than a different way of being.

To me it's like trying to make everyone male because being female is "different". We could correct all those tricky differences instead of dealing with the possibility of diversity.  Yes there are some biological annoyances involved in being female, but there are also some wonderful positives. Happily, women have the benefit of being a majority of the population, and it is not generally suggested that we should "fix" them, whereas ASD people are a minority it is common to hear this view.

*rant over*