Real Housewives of New Jersey: Jacqueline Laurita on Her Son's Autism Diagnosis, "It Consumed Me"
The Teresa Giudice vs. Caronline Manzo fight was just "static in my ears" according to "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star Jacqueline Laurita.
That's because she had more important drama on her mind: her son Nicholas' speech and motor skill issues.
During the now infamous Nappa Valley fight -- where Manzo called Giudice a liar, fraud and disgrace and Giudice in turn called her a "f**king c**t" -- Laurita was waiting for the doctors' to hear what Nicholas' diagnosis was. In her "Bravo" blog, she allowed viewers to get inside her head.
The trip was nearly over, and I had a lot going on in my head at the time. Most of you have already heard the news that my youngest son, Nicholas, has been diagnosed with autism. This trip came at a time where it was all coming to a head. The entire cast and crew knew at this point that we were dealing with some serious issues with my son, but we just didn't have a label on it yet. The cast and crew, including Teresa (surprisingly), respected that until we got the diagnosis and a treatment plan in place for our son, we wanted to keep it private. At this point, it was a race to get him help and every step of the way was another waiting game. Waiting to get in to see different doctors, waiting for insurance, waiting for home therapy, putting a diet and supplement plan into place, researching and seeking out help, etc. It consumed me. The petty, redundant drama was like static in my ears or like nails on a chalkboard. I was SO OVER IT!
Laurita decided not to join the fight at all because, as she wrote in her blog, "None of it mattered to me anymore."
I had nothing left to say, so I chose to shut my eyes, stay out of it, and tune all the fighting out. I actually really did fall asleep in the end. I can sleep through just about anything.
Laurita and her husband Chris didn't want to share their struggles until their son was diagnosed with autism, and they wanted to be able to control the information that was provided to the public -- not be exploited by it -- which is why she and her husband chose to tell their story to People magazine.
Our reasons for coming forward with our son's diagnosis in People magazine was because we now have a diagnosis and a treatment plan in place. We didn't have that while filming, and we weren't willing to put it out there until we did. The more people that we reached out to for help, the more people knew about out son's issues. My husband and I didn't want to risk his diagnosis coming out in a way that was not controlled by us.
She also wants to use her star status to spread autism awareness.
We felt that by coming forward with this, it could not only help our child, which it already has, but also bring awareness to autism and possibly help other families who can relate to our situation. There is an enormous support system in the autism community along with resources and connections to be shared. I think that others should be aware of this. I want us all to connect. I believe that while one treatment may work for one child, it may not necessarily work for another. But by sharing the options that are out there, we may just find the missing pieces that help our children to recover.
The reality star has offered to host a benefit for the foundation, Autism Speaks, at The Brownstone on Sept. 20.
