For some parents, the decision to have another child isn't a particularly difficult one. Two is better than one, kids need siblings, all that good stuff. As parents of one child with autism, the decision doesn't come quite so lightly, at least not for Laura and I it hasn't.
We don't believe Curtis got autism from vaccinations. He was exhibiting signs of autism even before those shots. While there are still more questions than answers regarding autism, we do believe that genes played a major role in Curtis being born with the condition. Specifically, the combination of our genes, for whatever reason, and probably other environmental factors. According to this study posted on Autism Speaks, if we have another boy, the risk of his being on the autism spectrum could be as high as 25 percent.
I consider myself a baseball player and have played in one league or another pretty much since the age of 9. I strike out about 25 percent of my at bats and it sure seems like a lot. That's once every game I play. If there was a 25 percent chance I would drown when I went in the ocean, I would stay the hell out of the water. So what's a parent of a child with autism supposed to do with a statistic like this?
Don't get me wrong. I don't consider Curtis a strike out or akin to a drowning. He's amazing and I feel incredibly lucky to have him and I don't even mind that he's a lot of work, I like work, but he does require an amazing amount of attention and advocacy. The fact that he has two incredible aides who write for this site should illustrate the amount of care that is required to get Curtis through a typical day. And let's not forget he is high functioning on the autism spectrum. Other parents of lower functioning autistic children don't have cute, heart warming stories of their child to share. With children Curtis' age, some parents are still waiting for first words or even recognition that the child understand who his parents are. Or waiting for him to stop physically harming himself on a daily basis. This is a scary prospect when I consider myself warned that there is a pretty decent chance this could happen on the next go round.
All kids come with challenges of course and even a typically developing child would spread us thin with the amount of work that goes into raising Curt. If we were to have another child with autism we are certainly well equipped to deal with it. We would have experience on our side. But I still don't know. Laura and I enjoy sports, hobbies, work, friends, some quiet time together. A 25% chance the next boy has autism too....and what that could mean...I really don't know...that's a tough one.

Greg, Dad