I would like to meet with other families. So far I have met with parents but no children yet. My son has a child with autism in his class at school but his parents are in denial :( acording to the school so I haven't tryed to get them together out of school.
It sounds like your family had a good experience!
I belong to a local support group and meet other parents at seminars, and definitely appreciate the chance to share notes and feel supported. I also recently met another family at a social event, whose son was being evaluated for Aspergers, and we really hit it off.
For those wondering how to find a local support group, here are some resources:
General info on how to find or start a support group:
Your best bet is probably the ASA. Here's a link to their local resource search function where you can search on "information and support" in your state, and even plot in your zip code and how many miles you're willing to travel to refine your search.
I went to a get-together for families with asd yesterday. There were kids
and adults with every level of impairment including three boys who were
very simular to my son.
Not only did they actually play and hang out together pretty well but it
was so nice to meet my ds's '"family". You know- I know my son so well
and a lot of his asd traits are so familiar I don't really notice them. But
then I saw them in other kids and I can see how my son might look to
outsiders. And there was no mistaken that any of them had asd and they
were all great kids.
It was also so nice to just hang out with other families without feeling this
hypervigilance that I might have to intervene because of ds doing or
saying something that NT families and kids do not know how to deal with
- here my ds's behavior was completly 'typical'. First time in a long time
that I did not get strange looks but recognizing smiles.
So if any of you have the opportunity to go to (or organize) a meeting for
asd families - do go!That's the greatest feeling to feel-- accepted! I never knew how much I was missing until I formed my own group and we had a picnic. Everyone helped one another and looked after all the kids. Suprisely, not one child had a meltdown and when they felt overwhelmed they stepped away to be alone. Its great to have that support and no pre-judgement atmosphere. Glad you had a great time!Great Links! I have got to say that meeting with local families thru our chapter of the autism society has given me a lot of much needed understanding and relief. and fun- I was so happy to meet up with others.
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