I was diagnosed with Autism in 1965 (aged 2). I grew up with autonomic issues, none of them formally diagnosed until they were pushed over the line following two general anaesthetics and chemo in 2011-2012. Read the rest of this entry »
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
Central hypoventilation means your brain keeps forgetting to keep you breathing. See, we have this thing called a ‘respiratory drive’ and this makes us keep breathing. This is why we don’t easily ‘just die’, because there are two things keep us alive; a beating heart and a respiratory drive. If either of those fail partially then we will have problems. Read the rest of this entry »
Most people love a big relaxing candlelit bath. Put your head back under the water and give your ears a good soak. Maybe even have a snooze. Well, its not so straightforward with the hypoventilation disorder of Ondine’s Curse. Read the rest of this entry »
ONDINE’S CURSE by Donna Williams Read the rest of this entry »
I was born in 1963 to an alcoholic mother who became sectioned under the mental health act when I was 3. I was born with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) which is a collagen disorder thought associated with high functioning autism. Collagen plays a part in immune regulation and brain connectivity. I was immune deficient since 6 months old and had IgE allergies to wheat and legumes which would have been present since infancy. Then a lot happened when I was two and a half. Read the rest of this entry »
Donna Williams is an Australian born adult with autism who was assessed as psychotic at the age of 2 in 1965, labelled disturbed in the 1970s and diagnosed as autistic in her 20s in 1991.
She acquired functional speech in late childhood and went on to become a qualified teacher with an honors degree in Sociology and a degree in Linguistics. She is the author of two international bestselling autobiographies and has 10 published books including 4 text books widely used in autism education and two books of poetry and prose.
As a screenwriter, she wrote the screenplay to “Nobody Nowhere”, the first book in her 4 book autobiographical series. That screenplay is currently under option to become a Hollywood film. She is an professional artist, singer-songwriter and published poet as well as a world renowned public speaker on autism now living with her husband in Australia. In her presentations she draws not only on her own experiences but on international experience as a professional autism consultant since 1996.
Donna’s is a speaker in demand around the world due to her unique perspective and ability to share her feelings and experiences on a very personal level. More information about her and her life’s work can be found on her website at http://www.donnawilliams.net .