daycare knowing dx | Autism PDD

I'm thinking about going back to work and found a childcare center that my son can go to after school and I was thinking should I tell them about his dx? I'm a little nervous about going back to work but at the same time I'm ready to go back it's almost been a year since I have'nt worked. I've had problems in the past with my son at daycare but I'm hoping he's a little bit more able to handle it, I wan't him to have more exposure other than school. How much info should I tell them? I don't want them to treat him weird you know? ugh, feeling a little guilty for wanting to go back to work,anyone ever feel that way? How should I get him ready? Probably won't go back until school starts, should I get something set up at school that will let him know where he's going after school?

Also, one of the kids in my class last year, her mother spent the first couple of days at the day care, so that she could observe and show the day care people what to do and how to handle. Her child was high functioning but this was a new situation to her and her mother felt better knowing that she would be there for the first couple of speed bumps

Good Luck!

I'm able and willing to continue being a stay-at-home-mom, but I can certainly understand that you have mixed feelings about going back to work. I'm sure almost everybody feels that way.

How do you expect your son to feel and behave after school, based on past experience? If my son were starting an after-school program, I would definitely tell them about his autism because I know by experience that he is likely to be stressed and exhausted after his school day, and thus more likely to engage in negative behaviors. Every child is different.

When my son was diagnosed at age 7, we asked the evaluators what they thought about the after school program, since we thought our son could benefit from more social stimulation. They told us to focus on quality over quantity. If the social experiences are negative, or a mix of negative and positive, it's no good for him *or* his classmates and teachers. They said it's better to limit social outlets to times and settings where he's likely to succeed. He was not likely to succeed in the after-school program at age 7. He's almost ready now at age 9, partly because the after-school program for 9 year olds doesn't have so dang many kids.

Good luck with the return to work.

IMHO,anyone who cares for your child on an ongoing bases needs to know your childs DX,It may make it easier for him ,and the daycare will be more understanding if he has behaviour ,also if he has a formal dx and you don't tell,you may get in Trouble if your son gets hurt at the daycare,or hurts someone else because you didn't tell.

Good luck,Linda

I informed the after-school teachers after T was diagnosed. There reaction (And they are caring people!) was like, Oh, what else is new? This was not ignorance, so much as an indication to me that they would not be handling anything differently ... which is fine! Apparently they have had no difficutlies with her ... so that is that.I let the teachers know too for Sarah when she was in kinderkids..she never responded well in the beginning and ignored the kids and though she had no bad behaviors I didnt want them thinking she was disobedient and also wanted them to help encourage social skills in her and not let her do her own thing..I wanted her to participate at all times:) I was lucky it was a small classroom with up to 3 teachers with 8 kids so it was perfect for Sarah:)

I don't really need to go back to work financially but want to, I like staying home also so if it does'nt work out I'm going to quit b/c I'm not going to insist that it works one way or the other.
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