justamom Report post Posted February 27, 2006 Did any one watch the real rain man... What a wonderful father he has.. He said " My father and I share the same shaddow" what a lovely saying, very interesting to watch..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hev Report post Posted February 27, 2006 when was it on? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annie Report post Posted February 27, 2006 It's just finished on Channel 5 Hev. The shadow saying choked me up Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justamom Report post Posted February 27, 2006 it will be on again channel 5 thurs at 11 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
smiley Report post Posted February 27, 2006 I was when he said that - if that's not love, i don't know what is.. Another that stuck in my mind was the father saying he's Kims full-time carer..... 'Only 30 hours a day, 10 days a week..'. How true.. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oracle Report post Posted February 27, 2006 I find things like this very hard to watch. Although I did watch it. His dad is an angel and he is quite something himself. I find it hard to watch because although he is nothing like my sons I see so much of him in both of them. It's just small things but they are there. It's the same with Rain Man I can't watch it anymore because it makes me cry Maybe it brings it home to me that autsim, is autism, is autim and my sons are both autistic. Too close to home. Carole Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lil_me Report post Posted February 27, 2006 (edited) Most of it brought a tear to my eye. It also left me worried, looking at someone needing so much care and his father being 80 and the worry in his eyes of what will happen when he goes. He is such a treasure, the shadow thing just proved that, it would be a pleasure to look after him, so I hope they have a lot of geuine volunteers. Edited February 27, 2006 by lil_me Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Malika Report post Posted February 28, 2006 I did watch it and felt overwhelmed nearly cried in front of H just because of the "sharing the shame shadow" what an amazing "love story" truly amazing.............. and I like the bit at the conference when the father talk about the care the challenge and his son gift and then says "he is not for sale".... Malika. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lynden Report post Posted February 28, 2006 I watched it and found it very hard because it does make you think about the future for your child should anything happen to you. His father is an amazing man, really and truly and the we share the same shadow comment by Kim had me in tears. Lynne x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hev Report post Posted February 28, 2006 i will watch it on thursday,ive never seen the rain man film either,ive always been nervous to watch it,its me i get upset at things,is it worth watching? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DaisyProudfoot Report post Posted February 28, 2006 "My father and I share the same shadow" What a beautiful comment ....... what insight. I let the kids watch it and Martin AS son was fascinated ... he told me that although he and Kim were very different (opposite ends of the spectrum really) they were also very alike and he understood how Kim felt in a lot of situations. When Kim had his brain scan Martin said: "They'll find nothing but stars in there." Not understanding the comment I asked him what he meant, he said: "He's like me, there'll be stars." Anyway when the brain scan results came through and it was discovered Kim was missing a certain part of the brain so that his signals bounced off in all directions .. the CGI did look like stars floating around his brain. .........I didn't know what to say .........it was just spooky Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
call me jaded Report post Posted February 28, 2006 What a very tender documentary. I've always imagined when my other children grow up it'll be me and my eldest zooming around London in a Mini. The Mini's a bit far-fetched (at my age), but the rest of it is going to happen. Discovered today that my son can write. P4 level which is pants for an 11 y/o, but he can write. So important for a non-verbal child. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stephanie Report post Posted February 28, 2006 Bless, isn't the human mind fascinating. Reading the left page with the left eye and the right page with the right eye at the same time in 10 seconds, wow! Was it me, or was there not much mention of autism during the programme?? Saw a few things that I can relate to, yes it is upsetting to see these programmes, but you have to ... just to see if you can get an more information to help yourself. That said, I have never seen Rainman. I am going to do that test thing they did regarding the word "sweet". Let his father be an inspiration to you all! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justamom Report post Posted February 28, 2006 Stephaine I did not see the part about the test with the word sweet, K my son was shouting from upstairs for something so i had to leave the room for a while. Could you tell me about that, thought i had not missed much!!! But its typical in our house either the kids are dancing around the room or shouting so we never really get to see a whole programme with any interprutions anyway.. thanks justamom Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lainey Report post Posted February 28, 2006 I seen the last ten minutes, and cried for about an hour and have been thinking about it all day , about my own situation and the future felt quite down today , husband went mad at me saying why do u watch these things and get yourself worked up but can't help myself , not going to bother in future lainey Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justamom Report post Posted February 28, 2006 Lainey my hubby said the same to me but it was so very touching to watch i was too inquisitive not to watch... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
curra Report post Posted February 28, 2006 Watched it with my son. He could relate to Kim's amazing memory , needing help to get dressed and me helping him to put on his blazer also to not being good at numbers but he was unusually quiet afterwards. We talked a bit about how things might be when he grows up and I find that he has a lot of fears about the future so it's not just me only who worries about it. I also noticed that there was no mention of the word autism in the programme. It was a bit upsetting but in the end it left me a positive feeling because Kim was welcomed and accepted by so many people. He's lucky to be a savant, but what about the other adults with ASD? Curra Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BusyLizzie100 Report post Posted February 28, 2006 Stephanie - I noticed there was no mention of autism, too. Is that he hasn't got a diagnosis of autism? Although he seems to be described in most places as an autistic savant. The closes anyone got to autism was referring to developmental delays, and the doc who talked about a lack of theory of mind. Curious that autism wasn't mentioned at all. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steve_colour-se7en Report post Posted March 1, 2006 Hello everyone , It would appear curra, that a great many people do make Kim welcome as they travel around the USA. Just prior to any program which may contain similar content to this, I always seem to panic a liittle worrying about the way it may focus too much on some of our special gifts/talents we can have. My area is numbers, and code this also seems to be the area in which my son finds a big interest. One of the specailists in the documentary, Dr Darold Treffert, sent me some information which I have on my main site regarding Asperger and Savant syndrome, although it is not prevalent within the group of Asperger/Autistics it can account for something like 10% of those with AS have Savant skills, it would seem that because of our special interests ( or as some say Obsessions) and the fact that because of the nature of what we have, our ability to focus on things /tasks of interest means that unlike most neurotypical people we are not quite so easily distracted, yet we all it would seem have real problems socially. I heard someone say once about being loud and proud about being Autistic, to that person I would like to say I have Asperger/autism it is something I have always had I am happy as I am, however I can never be loud and proud of something inwhich I have no control over. So I suppose what I am now saying is encourage your child in a positive way in which to persue his/her area of special interest. Kim no longer reads only nonfiction, Fran Peek said, but has dabbled with some fiction, such as books by Stephen King. Because Kim is so literal-minded, his father feared he wouldn't be able to separate fact and fiction. But he has managed to keep them separate, Fran Peek said. He wanted to read the popular fiction because that's what so many people are talking about. Reading about prehistoric times or the Crimean War, which no one's talking about, he does for the joy it gives him. Kim Peek is a popular speaker in the assisted living centers. In one nursing home recently, he was invited by family members to visit a woman who, because of Alzheimer's disease, no longer talks. The woman's son told Peek where she was from and he started listing the roads and the boat harbour, the lake, the picnic spot, the businesses that line the street, memorized from old phone books of her era. She brightened up and even told a simple story herself. other Autsitic Savants : Tim Knab, a Russian artist in the 1830s, known for his cubism and accurate measurement of angles Blind Tom, U.S. blind and mentally handicapped pianist in 1860s Jebediah Buxton, U.S. savant calculator Alonzo Clemons, U.S. wax sculptor Tony DeBlois, U.S. blind and autistic musician Jonathan Lerman, U.S. autistic artist Leslie Lemke, U.S. blind musician with brain damage Vito Mangiamele, Sicilian savant calculator Thristan Mendoza, Filipino autistic marimba prodigy Gottfried Mind, Swiss autistic artist in the 18th century (B. 1768) Gerald Newport, American autistic and subject of the film Mozart and the Whale Hikari Oe, Japanese developmentally-delayed composer Derek Paravicini, U.S. blind musician with learning disability Kim Peek, U.S. savant with eidetic memory and model for Rain Man James Henry Pullen, British deaf-mute "Genius of Earlswood Asylum" Monty Pickren, U.S. autistic clock maker Matt Savage, U.S. autistic jazz prodigy Daniel Tammet, U.K. synaesthetic high-functioning autistic savant Gilles Trehin, French autistic artist and creator of the fictitious city of Urville Richard Wawro, Scottish autistic artist George Widener, U.S. autistic savant, artist with calculator and calendar skills Stephen Wiltshire, British autistic artist Seth F. Henriett, Hungarian autistic savant with multiple autoimmune disorders, poet and writer I will leave it here before I go off on my special area of interest....whoops.....sorry Steve.. I think the boy means well but he is distinctly inclined to be inattentive...... Tutor of Winston Churchill to Lord Randolph Churchill, Winston's father Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
curra Report post Posted March 1, 2006 ] Steve, Thanks for the very interesting information about Kim and other savants. What worries me too is that in these programmes the focus is usually on the savant skills of the autistic/Asperger children and on the strengths of the carers and little is said about their needs or what support they should get in order to succeed in life. And if only 10% of autistics have savant skills, then there may be about 90% of them who go through life having lots of problems while society thinks that most autistics have wonderful strengths. Like you, I believe tbat it is very important to encourage a child in a positive way in which to persue his/her area of special interest, but I also find that this is very hard to do for the parents without the help of the educational system and other agencies. I apologise for being now off topic but since my son is affected by this situation I'd like to mention him as an example: His special interest is history of which he has a vast amount of knowledge. However, at school there is sadly no differentiation for him although he's way ahead of KS3 stage. He is not being particularly encouraged by his teacher. I'd say that he loves history in spite of school and it's a real credit to him that he pursues this area of interest. But shouldn't all autistic children be encouraged and helped at school to develop their interests? Curra Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
board Report post Posted March 1, 2006 watched the flim last night well worth watching we brought it in asda 4.45 on dvd all the best jill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
forbsay Report post Posted March 1, 2006 Hi I was never able to watch programmes like that before but I found it very interesting. I have concerns as to what will happen to my asd boy when i am too old to look after him................. The first time I watched rainman - i cried all the way through. The second time i watched it - i found it very interesting and at points I smiled. Forbsay x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lucas Report post Posted March 1, 2006 (edited) In all the documentaries regarding Savants shown in the last year, the fact that each case was Autistic(fifty percent of all known Savants are Autistic) was never mentioned in the programme but was in the newspaper reviews. I am beginning to think there is a media bias against saying anything knowingly saying anything positive about Autistic people unless it is in context where achievement can be potrayed in spite of Autism and not in virtue of it. The media is heavily biased when it comes to MMR, so of course constantly implying strongly that it causes Autism whilst mentioning briefly that scientists have the *opinion* that it doesn't(instead of being wholly accurate and saying there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever disvorced from the ancedotal realm of opinion). To quote Pop Idol's Dr Fox when he was fooled by Chris Moyles into making a fool of himself on the Brasseye paedophillia special: "It is scientific fact! There is no evidence for it, but it is scientific fact..." So of course news agencies would just appear weird by saying to the effect of 'MMR could be causing a condition which sometimes leads to uber-competence in areas'. Because if the public were to get that impression, there would be armies of parents demanding the vaccines get refined to have an extremely high chance of producing the 'good kind of Autistic' only without the difficulties tagged on. Edited March 1, 2006 by Lucas Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
call me jaded Report post Posted March 1, 2006 Is there a diagnosis of autistic savant? I thought the term was changed from idiot-savant to just savant. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lil_me Report post Posted March 1, 2006 I have read many times the character in Rainman was based on Kim Peek but was given a dx of Autism, which I don't think Kim has. The following article http://www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org/savant/kimpeek.cfm includes a quote from Fran saying Kim is not behaviorally autistic. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Malika Report post Posted March 2, 2006 Hi <'> Having read aboout Kim I think he use to be very shy and developed a liking for contact when he started to get a positive response from people this the huge problem most As ASD children face they usualy wants to interact but have to endure so much rejection that they become angry shy unsecure and no longer want to interact. I have seen in the programe many things which I can relate to my son from the clumsiness in getting downstairs to the fact to blow up answer in a logical way but social inapropriate way Kim father mention how his son can get stuck with some idea frustrated and even angry. This as many of us know is part of the autistic behaviour we can experience, unfortunatly not all our children will develope skills which could help them in thier connection with people. Fran Peek describes his son this way: "Kim is not behaviorally autistic. He has a warm, loving personality. He truly cares for people and enjoys sharing his unique skills and knowledge capacity. This is more a comment I would relate to the idea that people have about autism H for example is very affectionate <'> cares for people (except when he gets angry) and is always ready to sharet he things he likes or know with others, only the fact that he has been tease and rejected so many times at school and elsewhere has made him now somebody who "rather like to stay on his own. Malika. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lucas Report post Posted March 2, 2006 I do disagree strongly with Frank Peek on that whole stereotype of 'behaviourally autistic'. Does he mean to imply that Autistic people are not warm, loving and care for others? I don't want to be putting meanings there that are my own projections, but I'd need to hear him rephrase it. My own opinion concerning how Autistic adults and children are in regard to others depends entirely on how they are treated over time and in specific circtumstances by other people. I've seen no evidence to support the supposedly 'accepted' view that Autism makes some Autistics the way they are. It's most likely that Fran's own opinion though led to the documentry not mentioning Autism, but Kim Peek fits it to the capital A. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brook Report post Posted March 2, 2006 For anyone who missed it, it's on again in five minutes on channel 5. 11pm. I'm off to have a peek. Brook Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AmyNelson Report post Posted March 3, 2006 Steve I saw your list. Were the blind people on the list autistic or blind and had savant syndrome? See - http://www.savantacademy.org/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elaine1 Report post Posted March 5, 2006 mm i wasnt too sure of it. I felt too much like a freak show for my liking. Also the man obviously wasnt enjoying it and was just repeating what his father had told him to say to every person he met. It felt uncomfortable for me, even on the bus his father made him tell a man what day he was born on, it was like he was on show all the time. not for me. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
polkadotty Report post Posted March 7, 2006 I saw the programme, despite warnings from my husband that I was bound to cry - but i didn't. I found it really heart-warming, and affirming. But i agree that there was very little 'autism' discussed in the hour it was on - my son has aspergers and though he doesn't really empathise, he certainly feels very strong emotions and has deep feelings for people and animals and things. He also desperately wants to socialise, but lacks the skills to do it appropriately and i recognised that aspect of him in Kim Peek, not knowing howing to make friends apart from bombarding them with information. At school, my son was seen always as extremely able and highly intelligent, working 1 to 2 years ahead of his peers, but the staff seemed to view his controlling tendencies just as mean and rather obnoxious, rather than stemming from a disability. I find that so frustrating. I feel that if we can just get C through childhood and give him the support he needs to acquire some more social skills he'll love adulthood and be a fabulous man - odd but fabulous. He's fabulous now, but there are few of us who see that clearly.... anyway, will stop rambling Polkadotty Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
