July 2013 - Navigating Autism

Autism and Vaccines – 15 years later

December 1, 2014July 21, 2013 by Andy Areffi

What have the last 15 years done to our understanding of autism and vaccines? We had 2 measles outbreaks in our daughter’s school. When you roll the dice you do it with everyone’s child. Ms. Willingham does an excellent job explaining the damage this has done to the world. The Price Of The Autism-Measles Panic, … Read more

Police Search For Missing Boy With Autism

July 10, 2013 by Andy Areffi

Please share this with anyone living in the Southern California area. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/09/terry-dewayne-smith-missing_n_3567362.html MENIFEE, Calif. — Officials pledged to keep scouring a sun-scorched area of Southern California on Tuesday until they find an autistic 11-year-old boy who was last seen at his home during the weekend. Temperatures have topped 100 degrees every day since Terry Dewayne … Read more

About the Areffis

The Areffis are the parents of three children with autism – Kennedy, age 10, Alex, age 9, and Bella, age 7. They wrote “Navigating Autism” because they were not able to find a book to guide them when Kennedy was diagnosed with autism in 2005. They were still struggling to get the assistance she needed when Alex was diagnosed on the spectrum in 2006 and Bella in 2008. They work tirelessly to support parents of autistic children, “We want to help as many people as possible,” says Melissa. “With early intervention, these kids can go on to become anything, and not dependent on disability services their entire lives. As parents, we want our kids to have a shot at happiness, and a ‘normal’ life. We figured we didn’t have any right to complain about how things are unless we did something about it to help.”