Autism - No Respecter of Class or Status

April 2nd, 2008 is World Autism Awareness Day. As someone whose family is closely affected by this mysterious disorder,I feel that it is only right that I start this awareness now! Autism is a mysterious brain disorder that affects 1 in every 150 children, and 1 in every 94 boys. There is still no known cause of this disorder. The disorder typically appears within the first three years of a child's life and hinders the child's ability to socialize and communicate.

Autism is no respecter of persons. In 2001, my eldest sister gave birth to a charmingly handsome baby boy(Ubong-Jason)... the nurses at the hospital deemed him the 'Most Bautiful Baby of the year'... and I agreed...still agree! Little did we know that the baby that brought us so much joy and laughter would soon be diagnosed with a disorder.... You know, at that time in nigeria nobody really knew anything about Autism... The mother had noticed that her beloved baby was gradually shutting himself in, the baby that used to crawl around the house, dancing to the tune of tv jingles was gently disappearing in character and personality... She said "something is wrong with my baby"... the doctors said it was nothing to worry about, that some children delay in developing social skills. Eventually, Jason lost every bit of social interactions, kept all to himself, couldn't speak, couldn't play with his peers and siblings, couldn't say mommy or daddy, and even when he tries, he pretends the word didn't just come out of him... He gets periodic seizures...it's tough, real tough to raise a child that can not do much for himself, especially in Nigeria, where there is little or no resources available for special kids with disorders.


Toni Braxton

Like I said, it is no respecter of class or status....several celebrities are having to deal with raising their austic kids. In January 2007, Grammy award winning singer, Toni Braxton appeared on ABC's The view to talk about raising her autistic son and to raise awareness to the Cause that is really close to her heart. The singer gave an emotional heart-felt description of what it is like to live with an autistic child... the helplessness she feels; not being able to rescue her child... as she spoke, I could hear my sister's voice speaking through her...http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/136809/toni_braxton_breaks_down_and_cries.html


Jenny McCarthy

Another familiar face dealing with autism is actress and author Jenny McCarthy. This celebrity mom has a son that was diagnosed with the disorder a few years ago. She soon published a book titled: "Louder Than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism". In the book, she details her son's battle with autism. Jenny also appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show along side with tv actress Holly Robinson. The show which focused on creating awareness for this dreadful disorder was themed'Jenny McCarthy and Holly Robinson Peete—Their Fight to Save Their Autistic Sons'....to watch a clip from the show visit: http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200709/tows_past_20070918.jhtml?promocode=incl20070918TD


Holly Robinson Peete

Several other celebs and everyday people are faced with this disorder..... when the cause is relatively unknown it is hard to even start taking precautions to protect your baby's future... but thank God for Hope.. hopefully with all the awareness that has been brought to autism .... we'll be able to raise enough money for further research to find the cause and the cure for it....

There is a spectrum of autism, therefore, every autistic person is unique, Some people maybe be little autistic or very austic. Some common symptoms associated with autism are:
*Lack of eye contact
*Little or no communication
*Lack of social skills
*Repetitive behavior and lining up items in a ritualistic manner and following routine
*Prefers activities that requires no verbalization
*Episodes of seizures
*Mental Retardation
*ETC.

This is a very serious disorder as it is becoming very rampant. This year alone, over 25000 children will be diagnosed with autism...... please spread the word and donate to the cause if you can.

Treatments:

There is no scientifically proven effective treatment for the disorder but alternative treatments that some parents are getting for their kids can be found here; http://www.autismspeaks.org/whattodo/treatments_non_standard.php

Related links:
http://autismspeaks.org
http://www.autism-society.org
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/03/31/autism.main/index.html

Thanks for reading....remember knowledge is power!
Don't mind my typos or any errors...haven't yet prove-read it

U-News Feed

I'm sorry guys for not posting new stuff on the blog.... but I've done some editting on the side pane... you might notice... check out the news feeds for your Nollywood- E! news...I'm working on new topics... stay tuned! and stay out of trouble.
Love,
uni

Happy Easter

"Can Do" Attitude

Deaf actress, Academy award - Best Actress winner (1987) and Golden Globe award - Best Actress, Drama (1987), Marlee Matlin has proved to me that you can do anything you set your mind on. For someone who has total hearing impairment to come out and compete in Dancing with the Stars (a dance competition that requires dancing with a partner)shows us all that we can do any and everything. Watching her on the show, all I could see was this amazingly gorgeous lady who is so full of life and has a positive attitude towards life.

Most people even myself, would capitalize on our disability and not want to try out any out of our comfort zone. But look at Marlee, she loves life and wants to live it to the fullest.... not making excuses or allowing deafness stand in the way of her livelihood....She has achieved a lot more than most people with little or no challenges would ever achieve...She is a wife and mother, won several prestigious awards, an author, and executive producer.

I must say that, I am really inspired by her accomplishments and approach towards life. I just want to encourage everyone that is reading this to change their attitude towards life....develop a "can do" attitude and you will be amaze at how much you can achieve. It does not have to be a physical disability, anything you feel is an hindrance to your progress is a disability... it could be fear... do not allow fear to steal your life...go out there and try out something you really want and love. It is better to try and fail than not trying at all.

There is only one life to live. So go out there and enjoy what life has to offer.
Go sky diving... Take a risk... do something positive.

Uni and Tido Keeping it REAL

Enjoy this real moment of our lives captured on cam.
He wants to get into nollywood but I'm really finding
it difficult to give him my support 'cause he's been
pretty close minded towards my dreams.... So, he's not
gonna have it easy! You can't get what you can't give...
that's just the way it is. So what do you think?

UNI N TIDO keeping it real....

P.S: visit my blog for the video conversation
http://unyiverze.blogspot.com

much love!
uni

ST. Patrick's Day

What is St. Patrick's Day?

Tido told me to wear green to work that today is St. Patrick's day.
I asked him what the significance of St. Patrick's day was and ....ehmm the video tells it all...got no idea before now.



Thank goodness for the internet.. I googled St. Patrick's day to get in the know.
St. Patrick's day(March 17th) is a day christians, non-christian and irish celebrate Saint Patrick(385–461 AD), one of the patron saints of Ireland. It is a national holiday in Ireland and two provinces of Canada(Newfoundland and Labrador). In other parts of Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, it is also celebrated with parades in the cities, people wearing green and eating lots of irish meals..... but not a national holiday.



Shamrock Plant

So, why green?
Well, the green really has to do with irish...'cause as I gather, St. Patrick was long associated with blue color. Nonetheless, St. Patrick used the green shamrock plant(a three-leaved plant) to explain the Holy Trinity to pre-Christian irish.

So, there we have it... I guess, I've done my best to break it down. Now, we're all in the know! Let's hear your version if it's different from mine.... Comments are always welcome.



Remember to visit http://unyiverze.blogspot.com .....where knowledge is supreme.
Much Love!
UNI

MS Walk '08

On March 15th, 2008, My husband(Tido) and I took part in the annual MS Walk in Tyler, Texas to create awareness for Multiple Sclerosis(MS). Thousands of people all over the U.S also walked for miles and miles to bring awareness to this disease and also raise money for research.
I did not quite know what this disease was all about until my husband told me that his Instructor at school has the disease and that his class is taking part in the MS walk event. So, I took it upon myself to research the disease to get more information about it.

MS is believed to be an autoimmune disease of central nervous system that causes one's body immune system to launch an attack on its tissues thereby; disrupting communication between the brain and other parts of the body.
Most people typically experience their first symptoms of the disease between ages 20 through 40. Symptoms such as muscle weakness,vision problems, depression, partial paralysis, difficulty walking, emotional changes, or standing are common.

As I am writing this blog, there is still no cure for MS, but there are several FDA approved medications that could help in managing the symptoms of MS. Moreover, with all the awareness campaign going on and the money being raised, there is hope that researchers could come up with a cure soon.

I encourage everyone to spread the word about Multiple Sclerosis and also make out donations to support in research. If you can't afford a donation, you could atleast walk.... join the walk next year; make a difference and you will definitely feel good inside.

For more information please visit this sites:
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/multiple_sclerosis/multiple_sclerosis.htm

http://www.nationalmssociety.org/about-multiple-sclerosis/treatments/index.aspx




MS WALK '08 FEATURING: TIDO and UNI