Breaking Barriers: Autism Awareness through a Preteen’s Eyes – My Guest, Hunter Camp. “Autism is not a disability, it’s a different ability.” ~ S. Duncan Over the last 25 years we have seen an increasing number of children being diagnosed with autism.  In fact, some of the latest stats show that 1 in 31 children in the United States alone have some form of autism.  This is a 312% increase since 2000. The average age of diagnosis is around 4 years of age and it may take several years to truly assess the severity of the person’s condition.  The reason for this is because autism doesn’t affect everyone the same.  Hunter is not only my guest this week, but he also happens to be my nephew.  While I can reflect back over the years and think of several people I know that have had to learn how to manage and live with their autism, I can honestly say I’ve had a front row seat to seeing the varying stages my nephew has gone through as he has gotten older. I wasn’t sure how he would do in the studio with all of the bright lights, but true to form he completely surprised me with how easy the conversation was.  It was one more revelation of how we should never put limitations on someone and we should always try and assume the best.  Hunter gives a very honest and candid conversation on some of the things he struggles with and he opens up about the things he loves to do. One of my big takeaways from our conversation was simply, we as a society would do ourselves a huge favor to pause and stifle judgement when someone is acting in a way that is outside the quote “norm”.  Hunter and millions like him just simply see the world differently and they just want to be accepted for the person they are.  My nephew has an enormous heart and I hope our conversation helps someone out there by seeing how this young fella isn’t just surviving, he is thriving! Please continue to listen and support this podcast and be sure to check out my social media content on my website http://MotivateWithCoachCamp.com   Also, if you are interested in becoming an official sponsor of this podcast please click the link below to learn more.   👉 SPONSOR THIS PODCAST -  https://bit.ly/443wPRj 🔗 WEBSITE - http://www.motivatewithcoachcamp.com 📺 WATCH - YouTube and Facebook 🎧 LISTEN - Apple and Spotify   This episode was recorded at SRP Studios and Produced by Shelby Row Productions LLC SRPStudiosLLC.com