During Autism Awareness month, I challenged myself to reach out to other parents on Steemit who have children on the Autism spectrum, and it was the best decision I have made in a long time.
This has been a particularly stressful month for our family, as Autism awareness month just happened to line up with our son's official evaluations and Autism diagnosis, which have been at least two years coming. Though @winstonwolfe and I have already been treating him on our own and through local early intervention programs, we had a long wait to get everything official.
Now, many more doors will be open to us, permitting we can find the funding to pay for it all. Now, I know, just like any parent who has received their child's diagnosis knows, the real "fun" can begin.
Through all of this personal stuff, I was connecting with Moms and Dads across the globe who are writing their own chapters of their Autism journey.
Like @beautifulbullies who was bravely preparing to take her family on vacation and nervously preparing to make travel as fun as possible for her ASD child.
Like @imaginedragon and @erodedthoughts who have been struggling to find the right therapists to fit their family's needs.
Like @aspiejoe who, like many parents of newly-diagnosed Autistic children, was discovering his own diagnosis as he learned more about his son's signs of Autism.
Hearing these stories, as well as so many others, gave me an enormous amount of perspective and has had an influence on me as I make decisions for my son's course of treatment.
Are you the parent of a child on the spectrum? Or do you suspect you may be?
Are you the parent of a "neurotypical" who would like to understand more about the struggles of kiddos with Autism?
Are you on the spectrum yourself and would like to help mentor parents with an insider's perspective on how we can better connect with and guide our children?
The Autism support community is growing rapidly on Steemit! Here are some awesome Autism parents to follow. If you want to connect with more parents of children on the spectrum, any one of them would be happy to help guide you any way they can!
