Living with Autism

My Dad passed away after a really nasty battle with cancer on Monday 19th January, 2015.
He is at peace now but I feel the loss keenly, especially as my family circumstances mean that I couldn't make it to the funeral today in Australia; although I do feel very blessed to have been there for his final Christmas. And that he knew I was there. 

Losing a parent brings up a lot of conflicted feelings. As a teenager, then young adult you might have decided that the way that they lived their life wasn't for you and you would follow a different path. Make your own way.

You go through life, you find obstacles and you find success. You have children and decide that you will raise yours differently, be a different parent, you'll do it better, determined not to make their mistakes. 
And then you realise about halfway through a life that has been full of challenges and mistakes, that actually you do a lot of things that are just like your parent. And that a lot of them are pretty good
I c…

Today I am going to write about puberty and girls, specifically one girl who has autism and is now 15.

Before you get all cross with me, if I thought there was ever a chance that Grace could read this, then I would be asking her to help me write it. Because this is something that Mums (and Dads) need to know.

And before you get squeamish - I'm not going to be writing about the practicalities of managing a period when you have autism and a learning difficulty. You can read all about how our ABA school team managed that here on  "Girls, Autism and Menstruation" which I have put up as a permanent page on the top of my blog.

Our excellent Behavioural supervisor Ann-marie Donovan has written a full guide to how she and her team created a task analysis that taught Gracie how to handle that aspect of her life with privacy, dignity and independence. (which started 2 whole years before her period arrived)

No, this is about that other aspect of being a teenage girl. The maelstro…

Grace App 3:0 is here and it is beautiful! We now have the ability to edit or add text on all images, an iPad view zoom of the sentence strip AND if you need it, Tap Card to Speak....

Apologies for my long absence. I've been taking an extended sabbatical to be a Mom for the Summer. Slowing down to concentrate on my kids has been very relaxing.

So well over a month ago I saw a post on Facebook about "Back To School" kits on the excellent TherapicsFacebook page. Therapics offers a range of visual aids andevidence based therapymaterials designed to help children on the autism spectrum learn and develop through fun games and activities. These educational materials are great for kids withAutism,PDD-Nos,Aspergersas well as speech delay or other developmental delays.

Now, as a kid, I actively hated anything with a "Back To School" theme. Bookshops, departmentstores, uniform suppliers and shoe shops all seemed to conspire to distract from the joy of running around barefoot doing exactly what I wanted all summer.
I know now that it is a different story for parents, ALL parents. That many of you count the days until there is structure and yes, a bi…

Last week I was asked to write a guest post for an organisation that works with Autistic people around the world. They gave me a brief to write about a topic I'm passionate about in a way that takes into account my experience as an Autism App creator, advocate and trainer working in Australia and UK/Ireland. So I did what I always do when on a deadline: I cleaned my house. I vacuumed and mopped and tried to think about the brief, while my brain kept pondering this: "Where is my son going to go when he leaves school, and why is it so hard for people to see his value as a person with autism, rather than his cost?" Then I saw this article:  "The Lifetime cost of Autism" published by Time Magazine which uses this quote: "David Mandell, director of the Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research at the University of Pennsylvania, who points out that not enough of the debate about autism’s toll includes consideration of the indirect consequences of …

So April is over but Autism is still here and I'm delighted to introduce you to another guest blogger: Ana Nguyen




Ana emailed me about a week ago to ask if I would feature posts by Adults on the spectrum. "You bet!" I replied.

Ana rang me today (from Australia) as she is very keen to see me post and I had to explain that I've been too tired to write.  I've just been through a week of anxiety with Gracie that involved a lot of obsessive compulsive behaviour and not a lot of sleep (for either of us.)

We have been trying to reduce her meds for the last 6 weeks in consultation with her Psychiatrist, as they have health implications that are amplified by puberty. I guess we brought them down too much, too quickly.

When you are in the middle of something like that as uncomfortable as it is for you; the most distressing part is how much your child is suffering.
Having people like Ana who have experienced these things, and have the ability to explain it is such a privilege. …

My Facebook friend Jodi has contributed another post this year but this time her boys have written it themselves in words and pictures. People often describe autism as isolating; but isn't that more to do with society? Eli and Ethan seem to be wonderful companions who complement each other. I know that life isn't always easy when you have kids who are expected to fit in with the mainstream, but I think these boys probably find a haven at the end of each tough conforming school day, with their own brother. Enjoy. 



A word from Jodi:  "At 7 and 8 years old, my boys are now old enough to share their thoughts about being autistic...and we are excited to be able to do this as part of LisaMaree's focus on autism acceptance. To our family, autism acceptance is incredibly important and we like to talk about how it is pretty cool to be autistic.

A bit of background to set the scene: Ethan and Eli are born 21 months apart....they are close in age and are close friends! Ethan is now…