Content Warning: This episode discusses autism spectrum disorder.
Tera Girardin began to notice that Alex, her youngest son, seemed to be interacting with the world differently than his two older brothers did. This was when Alex was about a year old. By the time Alex was three, the family had a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder for Alex and set about getting him the best help they could for his development, his education, and to live his best life. Part of that was accepting that autism was not a problem to be solved or a disease to be cured but simply that Alex’s brain operated differently than the brains of typical children. Tera serves as Senior Director of Marketing and Strategy for Nexus Family Healing but she’s also an accomplished photographer and her skills behind the camera led to the creation of Faces of Autism: Inspiration. Admiration. Celebration. It’s a book of portraits of children on the spectrum from all over Minnesota. Tera joins Dr. Michelle K. Murray, President and CEO of Nexus, to talk about understanding kids along with understanding autism.
