Autism in genetic half-siblings linked to sperm donor

the truth is, no one knows what the hell is causing it. every other day, something new is linked to autism.

We've been saying for a couple years that my daughter's genetically loaded for Asperger's. Far as I know Mr. Mac hasn't been moonlighting as Insta-Dad, though.

I've also read that there is a link between older fathers and autism, and also that boys are three times more likely to be autistic than girls. I do wish the cause could be pinpointed, but it feels that perhaps they are getting closer.

This is a story they carried on the news here last night, associating premature births to autism.

http://www.canada.com/globaltv/bc/story.html?id=82972e65-4cf7-4d64-bb05-91dcd85c47d4&k=93848

My son wasn't premature, our ages weren't an issue when I got pregnant, there's no family history at all, and he had all the special genetic tests when he was diagnosed. They're making great strides in learning about autism, but there is still so much we need to learn.

"I've done a lot of thinking about this, and to say yes to that is to say that I wish Dylan isn't Dylan," Jackaway said. "I love my son and everything about him, and that means loving his autism also. Loving your children means loving everything about them. Our children don't have autism; they are autistic. It's part of who they are."

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I really like this quote from the article linked. I especially appreciated the distinction between "having autism" and "being autistic." Because if you have something, like a cold, it's a disease that can be and needs to be cured. But my son is autistic. There's nothing wrong with him. He's just different. Like my other kids.