If you were walking home in the dark one night and heard a female screaming for help, would you view those screams as challenging behaviour? What if you were in a hospital and heard a child cry? Would you see that as challenging, or would you be more sympathetic? We all understand that the lady […]
I had a message from a fellow autism parent this week. Two words of that message have impacted me greatly. She wrote: “I’m struggling.” It is so common for me to hear this. It is the centre piece of every support group, the most common theme on online autism forums, the single most heard phrase when […]
Most parents buy their children clothes, toys and other essential items, and use their garden space for barbecues, swings and kicking a ball about. However, I am an autism parent and that makes me think quite differently at times. Both of my children have significant sensory needs. My son has other complex medical needs and […]
Some days take me to my absolute limit. I am a mother of two children with autism. Sleep is a luxury, not a necessity; worry for the future comes with every waking moment. Many times I want to scream at the world, but I have found it doesn’t help. But there is one thing I […]
My daughter had been in school for almost two years, but her anxiety was still as high as it was on Day One. I had chosen to defer her starting school so, although she was one of the smallest in her class, she was actually one of the oldest. The staff described her as a very […]
Summer can be long and stressful for any family, but for those who have autistic children the changes in routine, lack of structure, isolation from friends, and sensory issues can make holidays seem even harder. As a parent of two children with autism–one who has significant learning difficulties and is non-verbal–I often struggle with ways to keep the […]