UnitingAutism.com

  

      This is my first Blog. This blog will mostly be about Autism. I am a parent in the process of starting a social website dedicated to supporting caregivers and parents of children diagnosed with autism. For the first blog, it would make sense to give a little background about myself. In March of 2010. I took in my two cousins whose mom died from breast cancer. The youngest child has diagnoses of Autism. He never received any intervention. His behaviors were all over the place. I quit my job in order to assist with the transaction. It was a very trying time. He was 5 years old, in diapers, and non verbal. He communicated through screaming, hitting, and banging and was given anything his heart desired in hopes of controlling his behavior. My husband and I put him on a strict plan where we pinpointed a behavior and gave him a reward for good behavior and punishment for bad behavior. Punishment was timeout or taking things away.     

     Today, he is 7 years old in the 2nd grade. I am happy to report he no longer screams, he is able to communicate his needs verbally and is able to read at a K2 level. He has made tremendous strides. During this process, at times I felt isolated because I did not know anyone who had a child with autism. I wanted to talk to someone to get through the difficult times. There were support groups but I was unable to attend.

     I always said to myself, “If only there was an online support system where I could talk to someone live at my house. This year I have decided to take on the dream. I have Masters in mental health counseling and worked in the field for over 10 years. I know firsthand how important it is to take care of you mentally. In order to take care of our children it is crucial we are mentally sane. I feel if parents of children with autism had live support, and were able to jump on the computer at anytime of the day to vent and have a conversation with their peer, it would make there day just a little bit easier. The free social site, (UnitingAutism.com) is currently under construction and I will continue updating you on its progress.