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“The Lighter Side of the Spectrum – a Mom’s View” – A Vulnerable Child
When my son Jack was about four years old, I lost him in the mall. I was pulling a sweater on over my clothes to see if it would fit, and in the three seconds it took for me to poke my head through the fabric, he was gone. One minute, he was there, standing right in front of me with his overalls...
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“The Lighter Side of the Spectrum – a Mom’s View” – Did You Know?
You may not know this, but a couple of months ago I un-friended you on Facebook. I mean, we weren’t exactly friends in the regular sense. We never met for coffee or talked on the phone or texted each other. We don’t even live in the same state, and I haven’t seen you in over ten...
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“The Lighter Side of the Spectrum – a Mom’s View” I Know Why He Has Autism
Hi, my name is Carrie Cariello. I am forty-two years old. I am married to a man named Joe and we have five children. Twelve years ago, I gave birth to a baby boy with a neurological disorder called autism. It impacts the way he eats, sleeps, talks, and thinks. He is considered special needs,...
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Empowering Parents: Caregiver Support for Youth and Adolescents with ASD
Parents rely on neighbors, friends, family members and other caregivers to provide in-home temporary caregiver support, frequently referred to as “babysitting,” for their children while they attend meetings, run errands, and have some “couple” time away from routine family responsibilities....
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“The Lighter Side of the Spectrum – a Mom’s View” The Music Within His Body
There’s something on my mind lately; a knot I’ve been trying to untangle. I thought maybe we could talk about it. Stimming. You know, stimming? The way my 12-year old son Jack jumps and hops and grunts at least, oh, I don’t know, fifty times a day? Stimming is short for self-stimulation,...
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Increasing Psychological Flexibility When Parenting a Child with ASD
Parents and caregivers of a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are presented with extreme challenges and demands. Oftentimes, this begins immediately when the parent notices that their child is displaying developmental delays. Parents commonly experience a great deal of uncertainty,...
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Parent Empowerment Among Parents of Children Newly Diagnosed with ASD
Parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often report high levels of parenting stress and low levels of well-being and parenting self-efficacy (Karst & Van Hecke, a). The process of receiving an ASD diagnosis and accessing services can be particularly difficult and...
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“The Lighter Side of the Spectrum – a Mom’s View” Because of You
I almost lost my marriage because of you. It was the year my son named Jack was born, and you were born right along with him. At first, we had no idea. He was just a squirming chubby baby who didn’t sleep too well and hated to be swaddled and cried a little more than we expected. Slowly, you...
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Employers Supporting Parents Through ABA-based Technology
Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are among the most distressed group and display more affective symptoms when compared with parents of both typically developing children and children with other developmental delays (Estes et al., 2009; Davis & Carter, 2008). Why is this?...
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Extending a Helping Hand
As a behavior specialist working in the home with the families of individuals with disabilities there is an exceptional opportunity to identify needs and concerns of not just our direct client, but also the family as a whole. While the primary focus is on the adult or child who needs support, it is...
