Strange Son
Two Mothers, Two Sons, and the Quest to Unlock the Hidden World of Autism
By Portia Iverson
Review by Angela Hutchinson
Spirit-works.net
“It was his mind they came for. They came to steal his mind.” Somehow the author knew that her son was changing, something was happening and it was terrifying. Author and Cure Autism Now (CAN) founder, Portia Iverson, has endured the unspeakable. When your child is born with challenges before they can speak, before they can walk, and before they know their name, it isn’t fair. When we watch other children speaking so effortlessly, playing without a care in the world, and then turn to see our child, our heart, in such angst, words fail. This was a difficult book for me to read, and yet I could relate to this woman who eloquently found the words to somehow share her experience and her heart with us. This task must have seemed monumentally overwhelming and I am glad she succeeded, because it is through this expression that others might learn and comprehend the world of autism and of this, at times, isolating journey.
I wonder if Portia knew that she would change the faceless disorder of autism. There is one thing I do know for sure…her love for her son Dov. Dov is severely autistic and was unable to communicate on even a basic level. Her family had no way of knowing what his inner world was like. They did not know what he understood and what he was capable of beyond his overt behavior of constant stimming (stimulation) and flapping (flapping his hands). She goes on to share Dov’s path to diagnosis and treatment thereafter. The author is compelling as she honestly conveys the frustrating road of how she dealt with her son’s autism and her search to find the way into Dov’s mind.
Portia heard about this woman who had taught her severely autistic son to communicate. Surely this couldn’t be true. How was such a feat possible when everything they tried had failed to bring significant results. She had to meet this woman. Soma and her son Tito would forever change the lives of many and forever be changed. Meanwhile, Portia and her husband Jon founded a foundation, Cure Autism Now in 1995, for research funding to find treatment options and a possible cure. They knew they had to create another mode for funding when they alarmingly discovered that the government allotted an extremely small amount to Autism research compared to other causes. How would we ever find out how to reach these children?
Eventually the author was able to contact Soma and the rest was destiny in motion. Soma was the kind of person that created her own roads. She didn’t just stay stagnant because the path was blocked. “If you want something very much and constantly allow yourself to want it, the whole universe conspires to allow you to have it.” As they continued to communicate, Portia found Tito to be an eloquent and intelligent writer. He is a poet at heart and has put a face and a pulse on the world of autism. He assisted Portia and many others to understand that he is not his behavior. In fact much of the time, the behavior and his emotions were deeply at odds. Soma and Tito arrived in Los Angeles to help Portia and CAN to understand what Autism is and how it is that he could do what many have not been able to do, communicate. Strange Son takes you on an in depth journey of specialists, testing, and theories. The reader can feel the ecstasy of discovery and the utter exhaustion of continuing the journey.
Tito shared himself with the author and it was a light into this dark void of confusion. For Portia, Tito provided hope that someday maybe, she could come to know her son. There was an element of doubt, however. Was Tito really communicating or was it wishful thinking? The enormity of his ability to communicate even astounded the medical community. It shook preconceived notions and humbled everyone.
In time, Soma offered to work with Dov. As much as the author wanted Soma’s methods to work, she was skeptical in the outcome. Maybe Tito was one in a million. As Soma tirelessly and patiently worked with Dov, he began to respond.
This was the moment that Portia dreamt of. Her life and that of her family’s would never be the same. No longer would they assume what Dov was thinking or not thinking, Dov was communicating! It required hours of work and dedication and patience on everyone’s part, but he was in there and he was taking his environment in. He was learning and attending when they thought it impossible. He liked Harry Potter!
Eventually Soma began to see other children and worked in Dov’s school teaching this new method. She continued to see results in all of the autistic children she worked with. 60 Minutes ll did a 13 minute piece on this discovery of Tito’s communication. The public was hungry and interested in the possibilities. Soma and Tito, in time, moved to Texas so Soma could begin her own business teaching this amazing method.
Strange Son is a book about obstacles, hope, despair, and love. Portia Iverson does an incredible job sharing her experiences with the reader and offering her wisdom to the many that may be on a similar road, or anyone interested in Autism and its treatment. To break through to a child’s inner world is nothing short of a miracle. The spirit of perseverance is alive and well in the world, Strange Son is a shining example.