I attended the AutismOne/Generation Rescue 2012 Conference over Memorial Day weekend, so I’ve been home for a full week now. Many people have asked me (in person and via private messages) how the event was…it was…in one word – INTENSE. With so many tremendous presenters, vendors, and opportunities to network and connect with other registrants; both years I have attended A1, I’ve left feeling completely exhausted. Good exhausted, though!

Traveling with a dear friend (made along this journey) made the time spent en-route and in the conference hotel that much sweeter. We found countless reasons to laugh, several reasons to cry and many reasons to celebrate as we reconnected with old friends and met new ones along the way. We arrived after the culinary day had already taken place, but dove in head first the next morning ready to learn, learn and learn some more!

I attended amazing sessions about: Proposed/impending changes (regarding Autism Spectrum Disorders) to the DSM-V; Understanding Parental Rights regarding Independent Educational Evaluations (IEE); the Importance of Vitamin D and the role of Vaccines in autism and general health; Lyme Disease & autism; using Local Media to influence/shape Public Opinion about autism; Nutritional & Medical Benefits of Camel’s Milk; the CDC, vaccines and FOIA; Why are so many (American) children sick?; Prenatal & Postnatal Epigenetic Programming; the Son-Rise program; Research Misconduct (via David Lewis and the National Whistleblowers Center); Restoring Brain Health; Recovery is Real (via Jenny McCarthy); Mainstream vs. Whole Body view of autism (via Andrew Wakefield); Elizabeth Bonker & Virginia Breen – I AM IN HERE - communication and autism; Do Genetically Engineered Foods Promote Autism?; Global Alert – Environment & Increased autism Risk and more…

Looking at the list above, can you believe there were countless more sessions I wanted to attend but couldn’t be in two (or three or four) places at once? As I mentioned above, A1 is an intense conference. There is very little down time and there were many sessions that I wanted to attend being held at exactly the same time. I fell into bed each night exhausted, wishing I had been able to attend more sessions…learn more…network more. But, that’s part of why I’m super excited that there are plans to post videos of the sessions on the AutismOne website for year-round viewing! I’m hoping to watch and learn even more that way.

How about you? Based on the topics listed above (or conference topics addressed that I wasn’t able to attend), what is it you most want to learn more about? I’m hoping to post some interviews with speakers and share detailed notes/write-ups from the presentations I attended soon! Did you attend the conference or watch any of the live streaming videos? What can you share?

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Leigh Attaway Wilcox is Editor in Charge of the internationally acclaimed AutismSpot.com and her work can be found on many of the pLDNetworks sites. Leigh is the author of ALL BETTER: A Touch-and-Heal Book published by Piggy Toes Press in 2007 (now available for digital download via Moving Picture Books). Leigh lives in North Texas with her husband and young son who loves reading, LEGOs, Mario Bros. and also happens to live with Asperger's Syndrome, an Autism Spectrum Disorder.