Roxanne 
Jacqueline Laurita of RHONJ announced a few weeks ago that her son, Nicholas, has autism. The Laurita family kept it under wraps while Season 4 was filming, but she is now opening up by sharing her family’s story and raising awareness. In a new interview with Tom Murro for Huffington Post, Jacqueline reveals what it’s been like for her family and comments on her cast mates reactions to the news.
Jacqueline tells Tom Murro that she is happy to be able to share the story of Nicholas’s autism because of the overwhelming response of support and advice that they have received. Read some excerpts of the interview below:
Were you afraid to tell the general public?
I was never afraid to tell anybody. I don’t feel it’s anything to be ashamed of. My son is a beautiful, smart, happy, loving boy who just happens to have autism. He brings us joy everyday. He’s adorable and a we consider him a blessing.
How much support have your fans given you? Their comments?
Since the article came out, we have received thousands of letters, emails, texts, tweets, and FB messages from people reaching out to support us and offer us advice and resources. So many have openly shared their stories with us. It’s been so overwhelming in a good way. We are so grateful and we are looking into each and every tip we get. You never know what will be the missing piece to our sons recovery. We are very optimistic about it.
Are you going to become more vocal about autism issues, charity work etc?
I’ve done a lot of charity work for autism in the past but I’ve been more quiet about it. Now that it’s out there, you will be seeing and hearing a lot more from me in the autism community. Whatever it is that I learn from this experience, I will teach others. As much as I want to learn from others, I want to help others as much as I can.
Of course, it wouldn’t be an interview without bringing up Teresa in some capacity. Jacqueline says that Bravo knew of the situation and were nice enough to keep it off the show until the Lauritas received a proper diagnosis and had a treatment plan in place for them to reveal on their own. She reveals that “most” cast mates were supportive before a diagnosis was given. Of the responses after her People Magazine story, Jacqueline says, “All of my cast members knew there was an issue prior to the actual diagnosis and most were very supportive with encouraging kind words and offering us different resources to help. Since the actual diagnosis, and the article in People magazine, all of my cast mates have reached out to us for support except for Teresa, but that was to be expected.”
The full interview can be read here.
Autism is obviously a sad thing and I wish the Lauritas the best in getting through this with their son! It’s great that they are using their platform to raise awareness. For some reason, however, I can’t get over the fact that she keeps doing interviews with Kim G.’s friend. This is the woman who went to court with your enemy to press charges against your daughter, yet Teresa is the devil for retweeting something Danielle revealed about her sister in law? I do think it would be nice for Teresa to reach out to Jacqueline for support regardless where there friendship is now. What do you think of Teresa not reaching out to Jacqueline for support? Do you think Jacqueline would have reached out to Teresa if the tables were turned?
