The Autism News | English

Before the age of two, a young businessman was diagnosed as severely autistic with other developmental issues. Today at 37, he is the CEO and co-owner of a national communications firm.

Growing up and dealing with several challenges, John Hall wants others to succeed, so he penned his story.

“When I wrote this book I had not really shared my story or the fact that I dealt with this with many people until I decided to write this book,” he said. “Everyone was pretty shocked when they heard the story and even folks that are very aware of autism.”

“Am I Still Autistic: How a Low-Functioning, Slightly Retarded Toddler Became CEO of a Multi-Million Dollar National Corporation” is Hall’s story.

“I was diagnosed at about 14-16 months,” he said. “I wasn’t talking, of course most kids don’t talk at that age. I wasn’t making eye contact, I wasn’t responding. I was really in my own world. I would engage in repetitive behavior, flick switches on for hours at a time, play with pots and pans.”

Hall is now working on his Ph.D. Telling his story was not easy, he said.

“First of all, I was really in denial with this for quite a while. I was ashamed of it, I didn’t want to talk about it. I really didn’t even want to say it was autism. I would say I was just in my own world and there was something going on with me, and there’s nothing to be ashamed of. I think that’s really, really important, specifically for parents and caregivers to know because it’s something I went through.”

His 6-year-old son J.R., who is also diagnosed with autism, helped Hall deal with his childhood struggles.

ABC 7 WLS-TV

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