Autism Family Life

Before I had two children with disabilities, I had it all figured out. We would do playdates at the local parks, host birthday parties at home, I would be on the PTA.. I had it all figured out. But then, things changed and my plans didn’t exactly line up with how I envisioned they would. Instead, I started to wonder how to handle the isolation of parenting disabled children.  Because, dear friends, that is one thing they really don’t tell you when your child receives their diagnosis: how to handle special needs parent isolation. What They Don’t Tell You About Special Needs Parent Isolation When my daughter was diagnosed, I had some inkling of what to expect. We would go through a series of evaluations…

If you’re looking for hands-on sensory friendly Easter ideas for autism, here are some of the best including sensory bins and slime. Hands-On Easter Sensory Ideas for Autism If you are trying to meet your child’s tactile needs, try a hands-on sensory idea like one of these Easter Slime Recipes or this Easter egg sensory play activity. Another fun idea to try is Easter basket sensory soup or Easter egg shaving cream sensory play or making a batch of Easter slime for sensory play with plastic eggs. For hands-on input, it’s really hard to beat a sensory bin — we especially love adapting them for my daughter’s PICA issues: We especially love these ideas: Easy Easter Sensory Bin from Crafts on Sea Easter Sensory Bin…

When it comes to planning autism friendly birthday parties, parents may lose track of all that goes into the process.  Birthday Party Planning Ideas and Themes for Autism First and foremost, the most important thing? Is something that your child will enjoy. If your child is easily overwhelmed, trying to invite their entire classroom or all of your relatives will not help the situation. You may want to consider having one or two close friends instead. A birthday party doesn’t have to have a lot of people to be memorable or special. You could even make it a special evening at home and serve your child’s favorite food with just close family. If, however, you do decide to throw a birthday party; your child’s interests…

As the parent of a special needs teenager, I often had to wonder what the future would hold and how we could prepare. Here’s how to start saving for the future as a special needs parent with our thanks to ABLEnow for sponsoring this conversation. As the parent of a teenager with autism, one of my constant worries and fears is what will happen to her future. How can I possibly predict everything that could happen? And I know, of course, that I can’t. While I would love to be able to plan out everything to the last detail- I simply can’t. And that also scares me. The uncertainty of the future scares me. Enough to keep me up at night. Or at least it used to….