Judith Bluestone - The Fabric of Autism: Weaving the Threads Into a Cogent Theory

"In TheFabricofAutism, Bluestone gives us breathtaking insights into the workings of the mind, especially the autistic mind. Only someone with the inquisitive mind of a scientist, a heart full of compassion, and the first-hand knowledge of how autism feels could have written this book."

Marybetts Sinclair, LMT,

Author of Pediatric Massage Therapy

"There is such a need to unmask the positive potential of every human being. TheFabricofAutism is like a beacon of light leading the way."

Jeannette Vos, Ed.D.

Co-author of The Learning Revolution

"The HANDLE concept is brilliant... Give the brain all the right ingredients and watch the magic! Using nutrition, homeopathy and movement, Judith Bluestone combines the wisdom of the body with input from the senses to produce profound changes in learning and behavior. A neuro-developmental approach to autism respects the uniqueness of each individual. Parents can now be optimistic that even the most profoundly disabled kids can function more efficiently."

Patricia Lemer, M.Ed.

Co-founder and Executive Director of Developmental Delay Resources

"I recall Herbert Steiner said of John Perse's work: 'Nicht wir richten ueber Werke, wir werden an ihnen gemessen.' (We do not judge works, rather we are measured against them.) After contemplation of great works of art, you see the world with the eye of the artist: you do not judge the work, rather it judges you. It changes your outlook. TheFabricofAutism is just such a work."

K.H

Mother and Grandmother of HANDLE clients

The fabric of

AUTISM

Weaving The Threads Into A Cogent Theory

Judith Bluestone

The fabric of

AUTISM

Weaving The Threads Into A Cogent Theory

Copyright 2005 Judith Bluestone. All rights reserved.

Published by:

Sapphire Enterprises, LLC
1300 Dexter Avenue North, #110
The Casey Family Building
Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 204-6000
info@sapphire-enterprises.com
www. sapphire-enterprises, com

Although incidents and anecdotes are based on real events, some names have been changed to protect confidentiality.

ISBN 0-9720235-2-6

Library of Congress Control Number: 2003116657

First printed in the United States in 2004 by The HANDLE Institute

Grateful acknowledgement is made for permission to reprint previously published material:

The Uncharted Territory of just Raising Ivy is reprinted by permission of the author from The Churkendoose Anthology: True Stories of Triumph over Neurological Dysfunction. Copyright 2002 The HANDLE Institute. All rights reserved.

This Autistic Man is reprinted by permission of the author from The Light Within. Copyright 1998 Lincoln Grigsby. All rights reserved.

Hear What I am Saying is printed by permission of the author.

Cover design by Kristin M. Adams.

Special thanks to Carolyn Nuyens and Janet Kerschner.

Printed in the United States of America.

D edication

To my mom,
who learned to love me
as her daughter
and to like me
for the quirky human being
I am.

Acknowledgments

... to my three sisters: Marlene, my biological sister, and Sindy and Lane, my sisters by choice, without whose support I could not have written this book

... to Lanethis time as Lane Browningfor being able to switch hats from sister-by-choice to Editor and, wearing that formidable hat, helping me display the fabric in a way that others may appreciate

... to Lisa Brenner, who gave much thought and numerous hours to help bring this project to fruition

... to the staff and volunteers of The HANDLE Institute, who gave me the time and space to research and write this book, knowing that although it will never be "finished" I needed solitude to finish it

Foreword

By Tim Hutton, Ph.D., CST-D

The nervous system in general and the brain in particular are among the most complex and least understood systems in the human body. This becomes especially apparent when we try to apply our understanding of the brain to that most puzzling of situations, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), which is truly becoming the disease of our times.

The application of traditional medical science and models of the nervous system to the treatment of ASD has met with only limited success, in part because our understanding of the nervous system is so rudimentary. If we do not know how the nervous system functions under normal conditions, how can we hope to apply our understanding successfully to a situation as complex as ASD?

The study of the brain presents a unique challenge since the brain itself is our principal organ of investigation, and as we investigate its function we are indeed looking directly into the mirror. The mind studying itself presents a multitude of opportunities for confusion, projection, and self-deception. To gain insight we must proceed with caution and, if we are wise, thoroughly examine all the assumptions that underlie the conclusions we hope to reach.

Among the assumptions we often implicitly make, and often take for granted, is the belief that the mind arises out of the functioning of the brain, i.e. that we think, feel, and experience, indeed that we are conscious, as a result of the cumulative electrical activity of all the synapses in our brains. We project an internal quality of our existence, the thing that we call "mind," onto the physical and biological structure of our brains. In our scientific and rational culture, we tend to identify ourselves with our brains, as if we, the brains, are simply creatures inhabit ing the rest of our bodies. We look down at our arms and our legs, our stomachs and our livers, our breasts and our genitals, and don't experience them as being "us."