Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (2003)

Season 4: Episode 17

Austin, TX. The O'Donnell family are given an extreme makeover. The story of Patrick and Jeanette O'Donnell, the parents of six children, is a rare and heartbreaking one. Five out of their six children have been diagnosed with and suffer from multiple forms of autism that range from simple communication limitations to severe physical and social problems. The O'Donnell family's case is exceedingly rare, as national autism experts have not recorded a single other family in the United States with five autistic children. Classic autistics have problems talking, relating to people and playing. They can be hypersensitive to their environment and react strongly to certain sounds, colors and textures. Caitlin, the oldest at 15, and Kiernan, their youngest at 5, have the most severe form called classic autism, and are expected to live with their family their whole lives.