Advice for Parents of a Child Diagnosed with Autism

From Laura Shumaker at The San Francisco Chronicle's SF Gate blog.

By the time my son Matthew was given the official diagnosis of autism at age 5, I already knew. This was almost 20 years ago, and I had only heard the "A" word to describe what Matthew probably wasn't. Back then, autism was not nearly as prevalent as it is today, and it seemed that nobody wanted to be the messenger. Once the diagnosis was confirmed, it was up to me to figure out who to turn to for help.
What a difference TWO decades make! Specialists are able to detect the symptoms of autism earlier and earlier, and while it is never the diagnosis that parents want to hear, there are so many resources available now from the very beginning. I asked parents of children with autism as well as individuals on the autism spectrum to offer their best advice for families of a newly diagnosed child.