More Jaylen Arnold!

Filed under: Campaign Watch, Irked Videos, Interviews, Auties & Aspies, QuIrked Kids

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Sue Scheff recently interviewed the great Jaylen Arnold for examiner.com.  Their conversation was so engaging (and so important) that we are reprinting it here in its entirety.

Enjoy!

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Why and when did you create www.JaylensChallenge.org ?

My website was created in May of this year. I created it because I wanted to find a way to help kids that were still getting bullied.

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Tell us a bit about Tourette’s Syndrome? When were you diagnosed with Tourette’s?

I was diagnosed with TS at 3 years old. Tourette Syndrome is this little thingy in your brain that makes your body do tics (move and make noises) when you don’t want it to. You can control your body, my body controls me.

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Many parents are exhausted of hearing labels; however you are a shining example of perseverance. You reference yourself as an “alphabet” kid—explain that to us?

Well, that’s because I have Tourette Syndrome, Asperger’s, and Obsessive Compulsive. When you have a disability, the doctors always write it by your name and they abbreviate it to make it easier. So I have TS (Tourette), ASP (Asperger’s), and OCD (obsessive compulsive) which is a lot of letters of the alphabet!

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You are determined to be a voice to fight bullying (which I may say you are definitely a voice to be heard). Explain to us how bullying has affected you and how you are helping others learn how to prevent bullying.

When I was copied and laughed at for my tics, it made my Tourette’s much worse because it stressed me and then my Asperger’s was getting all overworked because Asperger’s is part of Autism and I was a real mess. My mom took me out of school for a little while and then put me back to my old school where I wasn’t made fun of. I’m teaching kids about bullying because when I went back to the school that made fun of me later and told them about my problems, the kids listened and they said they were sorry. So I just thought and talked to my mom and said “this is easy, someone just needs to tell all these bad kids”. I had seen kids get physically bullied at that school when I went there.

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You mentioned that public school was difficult for you. Do you feel that we need more education and awareness about bullying in public schools and how to you think we can do this?

ABSOLUTELY!!! Just call my mom or email us through my website. We will COME to your school and teach your kids about bullying and why you shouldn’t do it! Or if mom won’t let me come that far, they will send you all the stuff and we tell you how to do it with the whole school.

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Why do you think bullying is more prevalent in public school verses private school?

Because in my private school it is Christian and they make you go by the Bible and Jesus don’t like bullying. Plus in private you don’t want to get sent to the principal’s office because she will call your parents!!! In public school, those kids aren’t scared of the principal’s office OR their parents!!

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Do you have tips for parents who are not able to afford private schools, however their child is being bullied in their public school? What tips do you have for the kids that are being bullied?

TALK TO YOUR KIDS!!!!! They are not going to just tell you one day. I didn’t tell my mom. I even took up for the bullies because if I told my mom and dad, my dad would have went to the school and took care of it and I was scared what my dad would do to the bullies ’cause he is a police officer. Plus the bullies will make it worse if you tattle. So you have to talk to your kids. And if you’re a kid getting bullied, TELL someone and always stay with your friends. Bullies won’t bully 5 kids together. But keep telling until they take that kid out of that school and deal with them. Don’t hold it in like I did. My parents only found out because my Tourette’s got so bad and my mom had to keep taking me to all my doctors so much.

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What do your family and friends think of your mission and the media attention you are receiving? What hobbies do you have and what do you do for fun?

Oh my family loves it and they all wear my wristband but I’m still just Jaylen to them. They have always loved me sooooo much! Everyone’s proud of me but my nanny and mommy tell all their friends at work all the time. For fun I do all kinds of stuff. I like to play on the computer, ride my wiggly worm, go to the park, and go to theme parks!!!

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Who inspires you and what motivates you? What are your plans for your future?

Well Uncle Dash (Mihok) inspires me because I never met an adult with tics and he has them too—even some of the same exact ones which is really rare. And I always said I was going to be a dentist if I could keep my hands still, but I might go ahead and be an actor because Dash said I’d be good at it with my excellent memory. I have a photographic memory so I can memorize anything as long as I read it or see it one time.

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Do you have anything you would like us to know about you that hasn’t been covered?

“BULLYING NO WAY!”

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[Via]

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For more, visit…
jaylenschallenge.org
dashmihok.com
twitter.com/Jayschallenge
youtube.com/user/jaylenschallenge

And PLEASE…
Buy the Jaylen’s Challenge anthem
Buy Jaylen’s wristband

Then…

Read Irked posts tagged “Jaylen Arnold”
Read Irked posts tagged “bullying”
Watch more Irked videos
Read other Irked interviews

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