In Mother Warriors, Jenny McCarthy shares her journey with autism, as well as stories of other mothers, to give hope to those enduring the struggles of autism. McCarthy's strength, determination, and patience lead her down a path of recovery for her son, Evan. She shares her story to prove to other mothers that autism can be fought.
One of the many obstacles McCarthy faces during her battle against her son's autism is the doubt of medical professionals. When she suggests that vaccines caused her son's condition, they outright decline her suspicion. The author continually makes the point that doctors and scientists are not to be trusted 100%. Sometimes the personal experiences of other people provide better insight and advice than any kind of professional help. Jenny McCarthy uses other people's stories, as well as her own, to provide example after example of children who only showed signs of autism after receiving many vaccinations in a close period of time. These stories provide proof that vaccines can cause autism and greatly strengthen McCarthy's argument. McCarthy encourages parents to be cautious with their children, even when a doctor says their child needs multiple vaccinations at a young age. Not all children are the same and many cannot tolerate that much exposure due to a weakened immune system or other conditions. Science and medicine must research the possibility of vaccinations causing autism, instead of denying the connection in order to maintain business from vaccines.
Jenny McCarthy also makes strong claims regarding the potential to recover from autism through behavioral therapy, diet, supplements, and other biomedical interventions. Once again, however, the doctors deny this possibility. After much research, McCarthy eventually finds ways to improve Evan's condition and eventually recover him from autism. Like McCarthy, many other mothers also ignore medical professionals when they say these things will not change a child's condition, and they experience miraculous results. When these mothers return to their pediatrician, the doctors try to claim that the autism was misdiagnosed in the first place. However, there is clearly proof that the autism existed before recovery. Medical professionals simply have difficulty accepting such a miraculous recovery, especially one that does not have scientific research to back it up yet. McCarthy utilizes her son's recovery from autism, in addition to many other children's experiences, to provide proof of success stories that only occurred after going against all medical advice.
Jenny McCarthy clearly has powerful opinions and emotions on this controversial topic, and her points make it clear that she does everything humanly possible to help other parents who have autistic children. McCarthy's strength of character and strong support from real life examples provide proof for her arguments. She definitely does a fine job of reaching out to her audience. Her goal is 'to offer hope, faith, and recovery for these families' who suffer from having a child with autism (McCarthy 17). She successfully gives hope and knowledge to those families who need help in dealing with an autistic child, while informing those who are unaware of the intensity of the issue. McCarthy's book is very touching and captivating for more than just her intended audience. The topic of autism is clearly emotional, and McCarthy puts pathos to great use in fortifying her argument. McCarthy writes on a level for all to understand, while still including official scientific and medical terminology. While her novel raises much controversy in the medical and scientific worlds, she presents her argument with such dignity, confidence, and evidence that the truth to her claim cannot be denied.