Imaginative Parlin girl is 'just like you' Fighting spirit of 5-year-old thrills parents, doctors BY MARY ANNE ROSS Correspondent 'Thomas the Monster" is an imaginary friend of 5- year-old Naiya Newton. He is also the title character in a children's book she and her mother Nikki have written. CHRIS KELLY staff Don and Nikki Newton watch their daughters, Aila, 3, (l) and Naiya, 5, draw pictures at home in the Parlin section of Sayreville. Naiya, who is autistic, started out nonverbal but is now a bright, social girl who helped her mother with two children's books. Many children have helped their parents write stories, but Naiya has autism, which makes her involvement in the creation of "Thomas the Monster" more extraordinary. Three short years ago, doctors warned her parents, of the Parlin section of Sayreville, that it was unlikely that Naiya would ever live a normal life. At 2, she was nonverbal and at times seemed lost in her own little world. Today, she is a sociable, outgoing little girl who attends preschool classes at Sacred Heart School in South Amboy. Nikki attributes the changes to Naiya's fighting spirit. "She stopped breathing twice the day she was born," Nikki said, "and today she still struggles to do the things that come easily to other children." PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY staff In their Parlin home, Nikki Newton and daughters Aila, 3, and Naiya, 5, look at one of the books the mother-daughter team published. One of the books is about how children can be different from others, but still accepted. Naiya may be fighting, but she is not doing it alone. Her mother and father, Donald, have been right by her side, along with her grandparents, friends, neighbors and other supporters. Nikki and Donald were thrilled the day Naiya was born. "She was everything we hoped for," Nikki recalled. "She was such an angel, always smiling." Around 18 months though, Nikki noticed that Naiya wasn't trying to talk the way her friends' toddlers were. "She didn't babble. She didn't coo. She didn't try to say mama or dada." The Newtons realized something was wrong. They began to think their daughter was deaf. "She would sit in front of the TV set and I could bang pots behind her head and she wouldn't flinch," Nikki recalled. Naiya Newton puts her imagination on paper. When a hearing specialist determined that wasn't the issue, their pediatrician recommended they contact the New Jersey Early Intervention System, a program funded by the state Department of Health and Senior Services and designed to help families meet the special needs of children with developmental disabilities until the age of 3. A team came to Nikki's home to meet and evaluate Naiya, and recommended a neurologist see her. "They said she is going to be diagnosed, and I said, 'Diagnosed with what?' They said autism," Nikki said. Nikki and Donald were stunned. No one in either of their families had autism, and they knew little about the disorder. A visit to a neurologist confirmed their worst fears. She was diagnosed with moderate to severe autism. "He said, 'Don't get your hopes up. She will probably never have a normal life,'" Nikki said. But the two could not give up hope on their smiling little girl with big blue eyes. "We just decided she needed us, and we would do whatever we could for her. We had faith that she could do more then they thought," Nikki said. The couple began by learning all they could about the condition. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, autism is the most common condition in a spectrum of developmental disorders called autism spectrum disorder. It is characterized by problems with communication, social skills and repetitive behaviors. At first, the family was involved with the state program, but as soon as Naiya turned 3, she became eligible for services from the local school district. Nikki started Naiya in the district program, but didn't feel it was best for her daughter. "Now they do things differently, but at the time she would have been in a classroom with other nonverbal children. I couldn't see how she would learn how to talk that way," Nikki said. She began looking around for other options and came across an organization called Parents of Autistic Children (POAC), a nonprofit that advocates for families of autistic children. "We are dedicated to educating anyone who works with or loves an autistic child," said Gary Weitzen, president of the group. The organization provides 125 days of training throughout the state every year for parents, teachers and police departments. All of the training, including a two-day intensive workshop in Spotswood for parents and professionals on Nov. 17- 18, is free of charge. Weitzen noted that, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control, New Jersey has the highest rate of autism in the country, with one out of 94 children being diagnosed. Boys are at greater risk, and their figure is even higher, at one out of 60. "We believe every child should have a developmental screening, yearly, beginning at 12 months, because the earlier intervention begins, the greater the strides that can be made," Weitzen said. He also feels it is never too late. "We have been successful in working with older children, adolescents and adults," he said. Nikki learned applied behavior analysis, or ABA, through the group. It is an approach to teaching verbal behavioral and social skills. "It can be something very simple, like teaching her how to laugh at a joke or how to respond in social situations, or having her tell me all the things she did during the day," she said. The couple wound up having Naiya attend a private school in Old Bridge called Minor Miracles, which specialized in working with children with special needs and used techniques similar to the ones advocated by POAC. Gradually, Naiya began to open up. She started talking, and though it was a struggle, she kept improving. Family members were astonished by the changes. "Sometimes it's hard to believe she has autism," Don Newton said. One of the biggest surprises came when Naiya started talking about an imaginary monster. "That's just not something autistic kids usually do," said Nikki. "One day we were in the backyard and she said, 'Mommy, monster … monster in the tree." Nikki thought she had seen some kind of animal. "But she kept bringing it up, and then she gave it a name, 'Thomas the Monster,'" Nikki said. Nikki did everything she could to encourage her daughter's imagination. They made up stories about Thomas and drew pictures. Eventually, her husband suggested they make it into a book. Nikki and Naiya worked on the book together. "Thomas the Monster" is the story of a little girl who sees beyond the scary appearance of the giant monster, Thomas, and befriends him. Nikki has also written another book called, "Just Like You," which is designed to teach children to be tolerant of their classmates who are autistic. "My daughter loves to play 'dress-up.' She loves to chase butterflies, and play with her 3-year-old sister, Aila. She's more like other kids than she is different, and I want children to understand that," Nikki said. "Thomas the Monster" is available at bookstores such as Barnes & Noble and Borders, and at www.thomasthemonster.net. Meanwhile, "Just like You" is expected to be released within the next three months. "I can't even put into words how proud I am of the two of them," Don said. "Nikki just does an incredible job with Naiya, and Naiya just amazes us." "She was everything we hoped for the day she was born, and she still is," Nikki added. The couple recently received good news when they brought Naiya for her regular visit to the neurologist. "He was really impressed with her changes, and talked about giving Naiya a milder diagnosis," Nikki said.