It's a tough point in a parent's life when they learn that there's something wrong with their child, and it can take a long time to accept.
That was the case for Sunnie Sciascia and her husband Art Reppas who struggled to come to terms with their son Georgie’s (8) diagnosis.
But one thing the Perth couple can’t and won’t accept is strangers’ judging what they presume to be just another out-of-control child.
“I was at a restaurant with Georgie and my husband, and we were having a great time until a lady who had a disability yelled out across the restaurant ‘what’s wrong with your son?’,” Sunnie told Daily Mail Australia.“Everyone stopped to look at her and looked at us. And I was a bit angry so I yelled back saying ‘he has autism.’”
Upset after the incident, Sunnie turned to her friend for comfort. Her friend’s son also has autism, and gave her an idea.
“She had a card that she had made explaining why her son does all these things, which she gave to people who were staring,” she said. “She would hand these cards out and it kind of stopped her feeling like she wasn’t a good mum. So I made a card myself.”
The double-sided business card begins with the words: “Message of Love for a child – we all have a disability, it’s what makes us unique.”
On the flip-side, there’s an explanation of autism, how it affects her son and how they’re coping as a family.
“Hi, you have noticed that my son is different,” it begins. “Our son has autism, he may be very loud at times, or seem shy or doesn’t say much. But our son is very happy, caring and loves being around other children.”
“Autism is a neurological disability, which means that parts of our son’s brain works well and other parts do not. However, with love, therapy, a great diet and lots of hugs and kisses, our little man is improving everyday. I thank you for your time, have a lovely day.”
As well as helping her to feel more in control of the situation, Sunnie feels the cards have a noticeable effect on people who receive them.
“It just changed my life. I was going up to people and they were looking at us funny and I would just hand over this card, and their faces would change straight away,” she said.
“They become more sympathetic. I’ve had so many people come and hug me, tell me I’m doing a great job and it just basically changed my whole outlook on autism.”
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