Dr. Janet Lucas Lintala, author of the new book, “the Un-Prescription of Autism” will be giving a lecture at The Winchester Public Library on October 1 st from 2-4. Dr. Lintala is also a partner at the Autism Health Center in Beckley West Virginia. In her new book Dr. Lintala hopes to change the conventional medical approach to children and adults with autism. She discusses how medications are effective tools, however, they do not address the core deficits of ASD, and should not be the primary treatment. (according to the American Academy of Pediatrics in its guide to managing children with ASDs) Dr. Lintala suggests parents and health care providers address the underlying health issues with natural supplements, use prescriptions sparingly, and save the medications for when they are really appropriate.
Introduction to Dr. Lintala’s lecture will be by local Winchester artist John Williams. As an autistic adult, John sees his work as a metaphor for his daily life. “The world is for me a chaotic place. Thoughts and images swirl around endlessly in my head, making it hard to stay calm and focused. Art helps me live with autism by channeling my energy into creating new visions. I make order out of chaos by organizing many disparate elements into a unified and coherent image.”
John’s work has been featured in articles and books, including a cover story for The Folk Art Messenger, feature article in the Boston Globe and his work is included in Drawing Autism by Jill Mullin. John holds a Bachelors of Fine Arts from the University of Massachusetts in Lowell.
As many of you may know, this year West Virginia was hit with a major flood that has left many people homeless. Brio has been partnering with artists in West Virginia through our new collaborative program “The Brio West Virginia Artist Exchange” In May of 2016, Brio invited the first West Virginia artist Sandy Shaw who conducted a very successful printmaking workshop.
Due to our close partnership with West Virginia, we at Brio feel that reaching out to the flood victims would be great so that they know they are not forgotten. At Dr. Lintala’s lecture, we will have a raffle for a two night stay at the beautiful Sally Webster Inn in Rockport, MA. which will be accompanied by a free cooking lesson with Chef and proprietor of the inn, Sawsan Galal.
All proceeds from the raffle will go to Women Helping Women (facebook link) , a West Virginia charity that helps women who have been affected by catastrophes and provides them with a bag of basic necessities.
