ABOUT THE BOOK
Imagine you are in the kind of calm, tranquil, altered-consciousness state people aspire to when they meditate.
Imagine you feel no tension or stress whatsoever, neither in mind, body, or spirit. Your entire psyche is enveloped in peace and comfort.
Nothing bothers you.
Outside noises are meaningless. Time is meaningless. You move through life with complete serenity, utterly unperturbed by whatever beings and sounds exist around you.
Here is the good news: if your son or daughter is autistic, that is where they live, in that beautiful, peaceful, totally comfortable world. Nothing bothers them; nothing causes them pain or disrupts their contentment—until you or someone else intrudes on their private space.
John Hall's son lives there. Even when John's son is pushed or pulled out of his altered state of consciousness, he avoids connecting with his father, his mother, his sister, and everyone else. Unless someone interacts with him in his face every moment, John's son retreats into his private world where he is perfectly happy, completely safe, and thoroughly comfortable.
His father and the book's author, John Hall knows exactly how he feels.
He used to live there, too.
In Am I Still Autistic?: How a Low-Functioning, Slightly Retarded Toddler Became CEO of a Multi-Million Dollar National Corporation, John chronicles how he overcame autism, what it was like, the pain of moving from his autistic state to the mainstream world, things he had to learn that most people take for granted, and what he was able to accomplish against all odds. John was able to eventually make friends, graduate from high school, put himself through college, earn his MBA, start a successful company, and start a family!
Overcoming autism was only part of his battle though. John writes about how many of his most significant life challenges began after he began to emerge from his autistic shell - some which lingered long into John's adult life, despite his many successes.
But when John's own son was diagnosed with autism in 2007, John's life was shattered. He will never forget how he sobbed as his son's neurologist handed down his son's diagnosis. At that moment, John experienced the same sense of hopelessness that most parents do when they receive such a diagnosis. And there was so much more. He immediately thought of the hurt, pain, loneliness he experienced growing up, how hard it was to learn how to look at people and to communicate with them, how scary it all was, and how the entire experience follows him to this day. John was heart-broken that his son would be relegated to have the same experiences.
For years, John could hardly say the word autistic when talking about my son. He was not ashamed of his beautiful boy in anyway. John just couldn't hear himself say the word, "autistic" in the same sentence as his little boy's name. John was in denial. Writing this book has allowed him to face his son's diagnosis head on and has restored his hope. It has also enabled John to face how overcoming autism has shaped his past and defined who he is today.
With this book, John hopes to provide inspiration to so many others who have been affected by autism - parents, educators, therapists, and loved ones of those with autism. Autism does not have to be a life sentence. Love, persistence, and support make all the difference in the world. It is why John is who he is today and why he knows his son will be able to write a book about how he overcame autism one day!
As science seeks to develop a “cure” for autism, John seeks to expand autism awareness and hope. Rather than highlighting autism symptoms and treatment options, John's book puts a human face on the disorder. Am I Still Autistic? provides a unique perspective on autism – told by someone who has experienced it firsthand.
Whether you are a parent of an autistic or special-needs child, a teacher, therapist, or family member, this book will provide fresh context on what it is like to be autistic and how anything is possible. Even if you are not affected by autism, this book will move and inspire you!
