帶著自閉癥兒童外出看球賽

For many families， a night at the ballpark is a treat. But it can be a nightmare for those with autistic children.

Autism causes a greater sensitivity to environmental stimulation. So the lights， music and roar of the crowd can trigger a severe meltdown that is difficult to anticipate and control.

\"They're frustrated and they're scared and they're just overwhelmed，\" said Debra Forman， whose 8-year-old son， Adam， has autism. \"You have to ask yourself if it's worth it.\"

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that 1 in 68 children in the United States are on the autism spectrum. For many of these families， fear of how their child will react to new situations -- and how others will react to them -- keeps them from gaining everyday experiences others get to have.

\"It is tough to go out into public，\" said Shannan Maxwell， mother of Steven， 6. \"When he's having a meltdown on the floor and the whole entire store's looking at you like you're a bad mom， you just want to go and crawl under a rock.\"

Dr. Wendy Ross was heartbroken to hear stories like this from families. The developmental pediatrician also knew that isolation didn't serve her patients well in the long run.

\"If kids are not in the community， building their skills from very young ages， then there's no reason to expect them to be independent one day，\" Ross said. \"It's a social disability. It needs to be addressed in a social setting.\"

So in 2007， Ross set out to do just that. Today， her nonprofit， Autism Inclusion Resources， helps families affected by autism navigate challenging social situations， such as airport travel， sporting events and museum visits.

\"If you start taking steps outside of your door， your world gets bigger and bigger，\" said Ross， 43. \"We just want people to have opportunities.\"

Many Major League Baseball teams hold annual \"autism awareness nights，\" when they take temporary measures such as lowering the volume on the public address system. But Ross wanted to do more.

\"You can't turn down the volume of the world，\" Ross said. \"It's nice to do it for one night， but our goal is for families to be able to go to a game on any night.\"

To that end， Ross partnered with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2012 to develop an innovative program.

對很多家庭來說，在棒球場呆上一夜是件難得的樂事，而對那些有著自閉癥兒童的父母來講，簡直是場噩夢。自閉癥患者對外界環境很敏感，因此比賽場地的燈光、音樂及人群的叫喊會導致他們出現難以預測和控制的危機。在美國每68個孩子中就有一個患有自閉癥。由于父母擔心他們無法面對新情況以及難以預測別人會如何對他們做出反應，這些孩子很少與外界接觸，很難和同齡人一樣每天從中獲得經驗、訓練技能，導致其在日后無法真正獨立起來。

兒科醫生溫蒂和她的非營利機構正在幫助深受自閉癥影響的家庭應對社會環境的挑戰，努力讓這些孩子能真正地享受棒球比賽。

[http：//edition.cnn.com/2014/06/19/living/cnnheroes-ross/index.html？hpt=wo_bn6]