When you have an autistic child, goals are often thrown at you from all sides. Their OT is setting goals about creating a sensory diet, their SLP might be setting goals about communicating wants and needs, their school might be setting goals about “reducing negative behaviors”. It can feel super overwhelming, and you can easily […]
It’s the most wonderful time of the year… Except when it’s not. I have always been obnoxiously holiday-obsessed. My family even has a make-believe holiday called Cookie Day and Santa even comes… When I had kids I was SO excited for the holiday season. We’d bake cookies and watch Christmas movies and drive around looking […]
I run a community on Facebook where autistic adults and parents of autistic children come together. The focus of the community is on education — that is, autistics are educating parents of autistic children. But often I see a pattern in posts with questions from parents. They seem to start the same way… “I’m scared […]
First/Then Charts… I’m sure that you’ve seen them… In classrooms and in therapy offices, maybe even at your house. And there’s a lot to unpack with First/Then Charts… Because here’s the thing: They can be extremely helpful or they can also be extremely harmful. See, there is a definite ‘wrong way’ to use First/Then Charts… […]
When your child is diagnosed with autism, there are really two routes you can go. First, the most popular route is the “autism mom™” route. You think autism is a tragedy that steals your child from you, but you are a superhero that has overcome. Thankfully, there’s another option! Instead of donning the puzzle-piece laden […]
Staying calm during your autistic child’s meltdown isn’t an easy task for anyone… But it’s particularly difficult if you are triggered yourself. Whether you’re autistic, you have trauma in your past, you struggle with your mental health or you just can’t stay calm during the chaos, this is the post for you! I’m going to […]
