Strong Advocates and Small Communities
I recently watched an incredible PBS documentary about autism. (Watch it here.) I then decided to buy the book to get the full story. Here my book review, five days shy of the 25th anniversary of my brother John’s diagnosis with autism. Case 1 (which very much was not Case 1) of autism is still alive today. His name is Donald Triplett. When we think of illnesses or diseases or medical discoveries, we may think of the first cases being reported in Medieval Times or even depicted on cave walls. But for me, much goes back to maybe around 1800/1820 - when records really started being recorded and shared... when data started to become more important. Either way, I think of all illness that relate to me or my family to have been studied or known about for 100+ years - easily. But not autism. Case 1 started less than century years ago in a little town in Mississippi. Donald Triplett was born in 1933. And he reminds me much of my brother. Deeply rooted in routines, they both could be found