Denise junk

Recent Activity

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  Denise signed the petition | over 1 year ago

  Should the front row center seat in the White House press briefing room go to FOX News or NPR?
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  Denise signed the petition | almost 3 years ago

  End the Perpetuation of Pity
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  Denise signed the petition | almost 3 years ago

  Let The Truth Be Known About AUTISM SPEAKS
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  Denise commented on the article | almost 3 years ago

  No Talking Turkey: Exploitation of Disabled Workers

  All programs designed for persons with developmental and other disabilities are based on economics and shrouded in the
  concept that ...."All persons want and need to feel useful to society" . With this concept in hand, it is an easy step to find companies who will pay pennies and hour for someone to stuff screws in a bag of fold boxes or towels all day .
  
  This policy is actually based on saving the companies who house persons with DD money because if all the residents are sent to their "day programs", they do not have to pay workers to come into work with them until 2-4pm . I know this from my own experience working in these houses and how difficult it is for me to advocate for a client to stay home from their day programs when they are ill or the weather is bad . The current policy is that if it is above (-20, not even including the wind chill), the client should go to work . I have tried arguing that this could be very dangerous given that most of the residents in my house are in wheel chairs, have poor circulation due to physical issues and could not walk away or be easily transferred to another vehicle if the vans broke down .
  
  This past week, a client was forced to go to work even though she was in tears from a bad headache because "they" believe that her headaches are not real because she has them so frequently and has dementia . Most staff refuse her pain medicine for this very reason but because her guardian sees nothing wrong with this, it is not considered neglect or abuse .
  
  Many companies try and "even out" houses by placing just one violent person in each house rather then housing them altogether . The result is that 3 other vulnerable individuals must deal with being physically or verbaly attached by the individual or exposed to their outbursts and never feeling really safe .
  
  After 6 years of working in residences and seeing what is considered "acceptable" as this company always passes the state inspections, I will shoot myself in the head before ever being placed in such a place .
  
  Please don't be fooled by a fresh coat of paint and smiling staff .
  

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  Denise signed the petition | almost 3 years ago

  Support Self Published Authors
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  Denise signed the petition | about 3 years ago

  Understand Autism-First Language
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  Denise commented on the article | about 3 years ago

  Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged

  Some parents just don't like their kids.  If they have a disability, it just gives them a socialy exceptable reason to complain about them and recieve sympathy for those feelings. I was afraid to have kids for this reason, knowing that my parents never liked me made me fear I would not be able to bond with my own kids and I knew how much that hurt . What I did not know, nor did my parents, was that I was AS .  What they may see as rejecting my AS, feels the same as rejecting me because it is the only me I know how to be.
  
  So, for years, I would have agreed with that mom. A child who is not loved is probably better off not being born because to live with out that love is not a life worth living . Now my perspective has changed a bit...A mother who can not love a child as they are, is better off not giving birth .
  

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  Denise commented on the article | about 3 years ago

  Wadda Ya Know: The Breadth of "Autism Issues"

  At 43, when I first researched,considered and sought a DX for or against the possibility that I was autistic...I did so for one reason. I was struggling in my job and afraid that I was reaching the point of another breakdown that might lead to another psychotic break or homelessness....I was desperate for answers and help. I was running against a loudly ticking clock .
  
  In spite of social avoidance, I managed to get to every appointment and eventually received a DX. When asked what I could do with this information to receive help...I was told that they had no "service" to offer but was referred to a DR for a prescription of Adderall,(though I was not told that I had ADD) and told I could come in twice a week for "talk therapy" .
  
  So, I thank you for your perspective and focus on supports and services because I don't need to know what area of my brain is "effected" unless there is some services that will allow me to function better with that knowledge. Although I am a collector of information I am even more a "needer" of help to keep me functioning at my most independent level possible .

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  Denise commented on the article | about 3 years ago

  Hard, Hard Questions: Residential Placement?

  I'm in the odd position of being both on the spectrum and working with Developmentally Delayed in residential home settings. I work the over night shift, (as I could never manage the socialization required in day shifts .) I became friends with another "aspie" at another house with the company and these three elements have given me a "unique" perspective on residential placements.
  
  Without going into great detail, I have never observed abuse of any residents but indifference, dehumanizing and manipulative attitudes, hiring unqualified staff and poor money management appear to be the norm . The trend in my area is to staff with persons from Liberia that many residents have difficulty understanding due to accents. I have observed many staff spending the majority of their shift on their cell phones or watching TV with little interaction with the residents and less apparent compassion for their needs. You can't pay some one to care, only to follow the min. requirements of the body .
  
  Another "trend" appears to be spreading the more violent and difficult residents among the houses which often results in the higher functioning being under stimulated(outings are geared for the lower ends of functioning) or abused by other residents . House managers are often spread to thin,( to cover unpredictable staffing issues) and staffing itself is high turn-over . Most houses are set-up to save money by requiring all residents to be involved with 7am-3pm, "day programs" which is often little more then setting them in a room with a plastic bag of screws to count .
  
  I know all placements are not this bad, but it is often difficult to tell from a parents visit when staff are all on "best behavior" mod. Some parents are so desperate to find some placement(waiting lists for years), that they may self-delude to over look problem areas.
  
  I don't have a solution but "residence" should always be a last choice.
  
  
  

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  Denise commented on the article | about 3 years ago

  Once Upon a Time, I Tried to Recover My Son From Autism

  Although it is true that I have relied on social service interventions in my life for anxiety, depression and chemical dependency...I have never received any assistance for my AS . Should we cure all the mentally ill and chemically dependent by finding the genetic marker and aborting them before they are born to be such inconveniences to society ? (That was rhetorical, I really am afraid to hear your answer) .
  
  If your going to cure me of my inability to read monkey language, (also known as non-verbal communication)...perhaps you could also cure the people who refuse to use verbal language to communicate more effectively .
  
  Before you cure me of my obsessions...perhaps you can consider curing the people in society who are obsessed with buying the biggest house or most expensive car just to impress others ?
  
  Before you cure me of my lack of desire to socialize as often as you deem appropriate...You can cure those who use socializing as a way to manipulate the vulnerable to make themselves feel more important or get something from them ?
  
  Before you decide that my staring at some moving lights is inappropriate use of time...you can cure those who waste hours watching football games,soap operas and reality TV ?
  
  I am not a useless human drain of resources...I am a potential that was never realized because "some people" decided that being like them was more important then being the best me I could be. I and other autistics are a resource that to others have over looked while trying to cure us of our disdain for daily showers or hand-flapping .
  
  Before you even "go there", I do realize that I am on the high end of the spectrum (based on your criteria), but I can't give you my bio here to prove what a long and difficult time it was to get here. What I can tell you, from the perspective of an autistic is that some of the cures are worse then the supposed "disease"
  and it hurts me to think of all the children suffering to "get better" .