This is a StoryCorps type interview with my mother.

Hanna Houghton and Maria D’Amelio Talking About Zachary Houghton

Accomplishments Clip

Maria D’Amelio is a mother to three children, including me, Hanna Houghton, my oldest brother, Sam, and my other older brother, Zach. Zach was diagnosed with severe autism at the age of 3, which means he only has about 75 words in his vocabulary and can only make up to 3 word sentences. My mother wasn’t very surprised when the doctor said he had autism, she could already see the signs and knew that something was up. Not only does he have autism, but he also has PANDAS, Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections. PANDAS occurs when there is strep throat that is left untreated. When there is strep bacteria still in the body, the body will create strep titers to fight the bacteria, but the strep titers also attack the basal ganglia in the brain, which causes behavioral problems. It also causes severe pain in the brain, which some people with PANDAS describe it as feeling like your brain is on fire. 

My mom and Zach have had to deal with a lot of problems involving autism and PANDAS. A lot of the difficulties revolve around his behaviors. Zach can sometimes get aggressive when something is not going right or something is bothering him and he gets stressed out. “When somethings going on, like an event that he might like, we can’t go because of the crowds and because we don’t know what the behaviors are going to be like.” Not only are these episodes stressful for Zach, but they are also stressful for the family, especially for my mom. “We could’ve been doing a whole lot of stuff with him and I think his progression could’ve been so much further along if we didn’t have to deal with the PANDAS and deal with the behaviors’ … we don’t do things because we’re afraid of behaviors”. Some symptoms of PANDAS are OCD and tic disorder. Because his OCD is pretty severe, anything that is out of the ordinary or suddenly going wrong makes him become stressed. He then can become upset and aggressive. His extreme aggression really only became a problem when he was 12 which is around the same time that he was diagnosed with PANDAS. 

Although there are difficulties, Zach has made a lot of accomplishments. These accomplishments don’t seem big to the average person, but for people with severe autism, they are a big deal. “A lot of these accomplishments are stuff that no one even knows like the making of his dinner”. Zach didn’t know how to make his dinner until about 3 years ago when my mother started to have him do it by himself. He has become more independent as he has gotten older, but he still constantly needs help doing seemingly easy tasks. “He’s heavily impacted by his autism, he’s not able to hold down a job, he will never live without someone being with him…probably won’t live independently ever.” 

Not only has he made an impact on my parents lives, but he has also made an impact on my older brother Sam’s life, and my life. When Zach got diagnosed with autism, I was 1 and Sam was 5. Zach started to get therapy to help with his speech, sensory, and overall skills, and my parents often had homework from these sessions to work with him at home and do activities with him. I would always try to get involved in these activities and try to get attention from my parents, but I quickly realized that Zach needed their attention more and these activities were for the benefit of him. So Sam and I often went and did our own thing. We quickly became independent and mature. I remember many people telling me often when I was growing up that Sam and I were very mature for our age. Our maturity and independence have helped us greatly in life. Zach and his disability have changed each of us for the better. We wouldn’t be the people we are today without him. I conducted an interview with my mother talking about raising and growing up with Zachary and how autism has greatly impacted his life and ours, listen to the full interview here: My Autistic Brother: Talking with My Mom About Raising Us