The One Overwhelming Thing that Keeps Me Up at Night
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The One Overwhelming Thing that Keeps Me Up at Night

As the parent of a non verbal autistic child, there are many things that I worry about. Some of these things are probably so far out of my control that I should just let them go. But I can’t. I have tried and tried and I just can’t. When she was younger, one of my biggest worries was if she would ever talk. I spent countless nights thinking about that, my head swimming with all of the possibilities. The ifs and the hows, and then finally the whens. I was optimistic. Maybe too optimistic for my own good at the time. But I just wanted the best for her. Then came one of her follow up appointments with the developmental pediatrician and my worry was…

What Does Autism Look Like?

What Does Autism Look Like?

One of the comments that parents of children with autism will sometimes hear is, “he/she doesn’t look autistic.” Personally, this bugs me and I’ll tell you why. At first glance, yes, maybe children with autism don’t look autistic. Maybe, for all intents and purposes, they look like “normal” children. And guess what? They are children. They are human beings… they eat, breathe, poop, sleep (mostly), get angry, get sad, laugh, cry.. you get the picture. They just also happen to have autism. So what does autism look like? What does Autism look like anyway? In all truth, if you want to know what an autistic child looks like, look at your own child or grandchild. Look at the children who live next door to you…

Why Parents Might Feel Grief After a Child’s Autism Diagnosis

Why Parents Might Feel Grief After a Child’s Autism Diagnosis

After receiving an autism diagnosis for your child, you may experience many things. Some, for that matter, you may feel over and over again. Or long after the initial diagnosis. But why do we, as parents, grieve their child’s autism diagnosis? For that matter, is grief an appropriate reaction? Honestly, that all depends on the individual. I’m not going to tell you that there’s a right way or a wrong way to react. Because on one hand you have a diagnosis and that’s a great starting point. On the other hand, this newfound diagnosis brings about a whole new world that you may just be unprepared for. What I felt after my daughter’s autism diagnosis was disenfranchised grief along with a whole heap of parental…