April is National Autism Awareness month

To the Editor:

April is National Autism Awareness month in the US, providing a chance to highlight activities, events, and issues related to the needs of the autism community. Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the way a person communicates, interacts socially, and the interests and activities that they pursue.

In the past, autism was thought to be a rare condition; now, it is recognized to be much more common, occurring in at least 1 in 150 individuals and touching the lives of us all.

As a result, it is very likely that you will encounter an individual with autism in your neighborhood, school or work setting, or your place of worship.

Learning about autism allows us to welcome people with autism into our communities and to benefit from their unique skills and perspectives.

Always, but especially this month, the Indiana Association for Infant and Toddler Mental Health invites you to learn more autism spectrum disorders.

We encourage you to visit websites such as the Autism Society of Indiana (inautism.org) to learn about local opportunities to observe National Autism Awareness Month. In addition, we hope you will visit the IAITMH site (iaitmh.org) to review, Autism Screening and Early Intervention: A Discussion Paper.

Angela M. Tomlin, Ph.D., HSPP

Associate Director

Coordinator of Psychology

Adjunct Assistant Professor of Pediatrics

Riley Child Development Center-LEND Program

Indiana University School of Medicine