Raising Autism
Every once in a while, we on Walk the Moon like to take a break from issue analysis and political commentary. That’s the plan for this week’s blog.
Over the weekend, while preparing for the holidays by making no less than 9 different kinds of cookies and treats (it’s as exhausting as it sounds), I listened to an intriguing podcast on non-verbal autistics (they referred to themselves as autistics) and special abilities they develop. In short, the claim is that these autistics develop telepathy or the ability to read minds. They can mind read their caregivers, teachers and nonverbal friends. Now, before you scream “debunked” or false, hear me, and the podcast, out.
Telepathy Tapes details a number of families of nonverbal autistics. Historically, nonverbal autistics have been considered “incompetent,” or unable to learn, communicate or develop certain skills. Even today, the medical, psychological and educational communities retain this belief. This podcast challenges the notion of incompetence.
One method of enabling non-speakers (as they are called) is called “spelling.” Spelling itself has been and still is being heavily debated. With spelling, non-speakers work with an alphabet board to spell out words. In its early days, this spelling was facilitated by a partner who touched the non-speaker’s elbow, forearm, shoulder or wrist. This led to criticism that the facilitators were doing the “talking” instead of the non-speaker. Extremely controversial, this kind of facilitated support is no longer provided. The nonverbal autistic points to letters and numbers on the board to create words and sentences. Some are able to articulate letters and parts of words. The die-hard scientific traditionalists have not bought in. They say it has been debunked.
Not so, say many teachers, speech therapists, caregivers, parents and other supportive professionals. In their experience, they have seen non-speakers write poetry, songs, music, languages other than English and even prophetic messages. These professionals say they do not have this knowledge and so, therefore, cannot guide a nonverbal autistic in spelling out/writing these words. Taking a step further, they say that many of these non-speakers can read their minds. This is usually not discovered until spelling begins. Spelling gives the non-speaker a voice, provides access to education and enables some independence. The podcast makes a compelling case not only for spelling itself, but also for the competence of nonverbal autistics and their special skills.
Usually these special skills are labeled “savant.” Simply put, “savant” means that a person has exceptional abilities in one area while having significant impairment in another. We’ve all heard of, or seen on news programs and documentaries, the nonverbal autistic who can play any instrument with expertise, process complex math equations in seconds, or understand and be able to read a huge number of languages they’ve never been taught. In fact, that’s a feature of savant- having the exceptionality without having previous exposure.
But what if, as the podcast puts forth, all nonspeakers have exceptional abilities? The nonspeakers featured in the podcast are not famous- and don’t want to be. And yet, they all have exceptional abilities in spite of being unable to speak or not having learned, well, anything, in a formal education setting. Many of these nonspeakers are prevented from education because of the incompetence perception put forth by medical and other professionals.
All of these nonspeakers are telepathic. They communicate with family, friends, teachers, therapists and others without spelling or saying anything, though spelling is used. These supporters discover the telepathy because the non-speaker spells out information that has never been shared or spoken about. For example, one of the non-speakers uncovers where Christmas presents are hidden the minute the mom finds a place for them. He does this every year. Or, the non-speaker provides private or other information- such as the time a teacher was late for school. The non-speaker spelled out “3 turkeys” when the teacher arrived, and this is exactly the reason for her lateness- she had to stop to let 3 turkeys cross a road. I don’t want to give away all of the amazing stories in this podcast, so I won’t share more. What I took away from this podcast: those who believe non-speakers have this capability seem to be on to something.
The podcast conveys a compelling story. Examples are provided not only by the caregivers themselves but also by medical, educational, and therapeutic professionals studying this phenomena. Statistically valid and repeatable tests support this claim. Is it magnetic fields? No. Nonspeakers can do this even when closed in chambers that block out magnetic waves and any other sensory stimuli. Is it lucky guessing? No. The frequency of correctness in double blind studies is so statistically high that it can only be repeated by other telepathic non-speakers in controlled settings.
The podcast dives into materialism- the foundation of today’s science- and the latest theories in quantum physics and consciousness. Quantum physicists have discovered, for example, that “entangled” particles billions of distance from each other change or modify at the same exact moment. These scientists conclude that we- well, everything in the universe- are all connected. These scientists break apart the long-held notion of finite individuals with independent thoughts and ideas. A great sea of consciousness connects all of us. That is one explanation for the non-speaker’s ability to tap into the mind.
These non-speakers have other special abilities. Some see spirits, angels and “heaven.” Like the Long Island medium, they are able to have their caregivers approach strangers to share a personal message. The receiver is always shocked. The podcast shares many examples of this as well. These non-speakers have beautiful minds.
As I listened to the podcast, I reflected on my own experience with autism. The podcast points out that this capability isn’t limited to non-speaker autistics. I knew that because from the age of around 2 until eleven, one of my autistic daughters was able to see spirits and angels. It started with knowing information she wouldn’t have ever learned. One day at daycare, for example, she went to a picture of a fly on the wall and pointed out the correct scientific names for each part. Another time, she told teachers all about the Greek gods- stories included. I may be partially Greek, but I had never taught my two-year-old about the Greek gods. After all, some of their stories aren’t very age appropriate.
Once, at a party, my daughter sat with the adults rather than play with the children. One father had just lost his own father, and my child sat next to him and without knowing of this death proceeded to tell him about his father and that he was at peace and in heaven. The man was stunned. After the party, he got my number and called to tell me I had a “very special child.” “She’s not like other kids,” he marveled.
Soon, my daughter had an “imaginary” friend who stayed with her for 7 years. This “imaginary” friend was from Israel and explained in detail the requirements for all Israelis to serve time in the military, among many other detailed pieces of information about Israel. Everywhere we went, my daughter saw people I could not see and explained to me how they died. While at the beach- she pointed to an empty space and said, “that little boy drowned here.”
I never squelched my child or told her these things weren’t real. They were real to her. We 3-D human beings don’t know a lot of things. We know other dimensions exist, but science is just beginning to explore.
My daughter lived in this world until the fifth grade. On the first day of school, the teacher asked each child to share what was unique about them. My daughter wrote on the notecard, “I talk to dead people”- she’d never seen the movie “Sixth Sense.” The teacher saw her notecard before she was able to speak and tore it up. My daughter didn’t get to share. The teacher also called me for a meeting. That’s when I learned what had happened. I was appalled. How dare this woman shame my daughter in front of a class.
It did its damage. Not long after, her imaginary friend told her she had to leave. My daughter cried for days.
After this, my daughter deteriorated in many ways- ability to learn, social interaction, knowledge, happiness. She wasn’t the same. She felt lost. I believe this loss led to her associating with other lost students. In junior high, she cut school and disappeared for hours with friends. Once I left a hairdresser with the highlight foils still on my head to look for her. In high school- well, that story has been told. She experienced horrible trauma, went to wilderness therapy and then residential treatment.
I’m happy to say that she is on a positive journey now. She’ll be done with university in less than two years. She spends her free time working on art rather than sneaking out. She is independent, smart and unique. If she tells me she sees spirits again, I will endorse her. I know it’s her beautiful mind that enables such abilities.
As for the podcast, it demonstrates for me what the non-speakers and my daughter experienced: intolerance to a belief in something different. Even more, shaming these children for being different. Only one scientific method is used today, although quantum physicists are challenging that. Why are so many of us afraid to have our beliefs challenged? For heaven’s sake, flat-earthers still exist! If we are indeed connected particles across the universe- we have need to expand our minds. Even if you aren’t convinced by the evidence presented, I hope it will open your mind to a world we speakers can’t see.
Telepathy Tapes is available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play and other podcast platforms.
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