Genetics and autism
My daughter Marley with my nephew Shawn. What are the realities of autism being genetic. I am not an expert on genetics or anything like that, but I do know that autism has affected my family. My 2nd cousin is 16 years old and diagnosed at a very early age with autism. Just recently, I discovered a few photos of my grandfather. In each photo he was not looking at the camera. It wasn't a situation that he was looking away by accident, it was an intentional 'can't look in your eyes' type of situation. When I asked my mother about him and his tendencies, she admitted that, now in hindsight, my grandfather had stimming tendencies. He would pace back and forth, just like Marley, and rub his fingertips insistently. He would do this for a long while, and people around him would notice and comment. My uncles would occasionally tease him endearingly. I also know that my husbands aunt, although never diagnosed, had severe tendencies leaning towards autism.