There’s a new study out on thimerosal, the controversial preservative once commonly used in vaccines. Whether or not thimerosal causes autism has been the cause of much debate, and this new study appears, at first, to reassure. I have to admit, it’s a little intimidating…
Having an invisible disability is hard; having an invisible disability as a high school student and being scoffed at by a teacher is worse. Don’t be that teacher.
The knife-edge between encouraging my teens to self-advocate and stepping in while I still can is a precarious one, especially in a world that’s unfair.
I’m learning that it was never my son’s special needs that made his life more challenging, but his lack of self-esteem. What a difference some self-love makes!
Is normal a real thing? Should I be wishing my special-needs kids were normal? I’m not even sure it’s real, and if it is, well, it’s not for us.
To disclose or not to disclose: that’s the question when you’re dealing with special needs and increasing independence. My teens are figuring it out.
I never thought I’d homeschool my kid, but somehow this is where we ended up. Spoiler: We both kind of love it.
When your teen (who is on the autism spectrum) is still a poor sport, game time can be tricky. Sometimes there’s a pleasant surprise in store, though.
My neurotypical teenager has had a cellphone for years; deciding to get a cellphone for my autistic teenager was a very different proposition.
A mom needs help and support for herself as she comes to terms with her son’s varied special needs diagnoses.
My youngest is about to embark on a new adventure: college (as a dual-enrolled high schooler)! It’s weird and wonderful and scary and awesome.
A woman knows that autism runs in her future husband’s family. She’s thinking about the future already and wants to better understand Asperger’s in children.
Asynchronous development can be worrisome and/or baffling, but it’s simply a difference that brings its own challenges and even joys.
The dance of special education gets a lot more complicated as kids hit the teen years; the challenge is to balance support with increased responsibility.
A reader wants to know the value of putting a label on a struggling older child, or does it even matter? I have strong opinions on this one.
I have a special-needs child and a typically-developing toddler. Do I dare risk playing the genetic lottery again?
Schools are closed today due to “excessive cold,” and it’s all my fault. Sorry, I’m not sorry—because it hasn’t slowed down my autistic son one bit.
After two and a half years of homeschooling, my autistic teen is embarking on a new adventure. Here’s why, and how we’re hoping to make it work.
At what point — when special education and speech therapy and other services are the norm in your child’s life — do you explain to them that they’re different? And how?
When back-to-school means different things for different teens in the same family, the name of the game is making sure that everyone gets what they need.