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Keeping It Together When Faced with an Autism Diagnosis
Your child has received an autism diagnosis…now what? Many parents feel as though they are finally able to answer some of the questions they have had regarding their child, but still feel confused, overwhelmed, and frightened about what to do next. Parents are their child’s best advocate and...
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The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation Launches Endowed Fund to Focus on Lifelong Family Support
The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation, for nearly two decades, has focused its all-volunteer organization’s mission on every aspect of adult life from employment to the arts to health and wellness to residential and recreational endeavors. An integral aspect of the Foundation’s mission has always...
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Essential Information: Respite Care for Families
Many individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) require significant levels of support in home, school, and community settings. Due to deficits in social communication and interaction, compounded by restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, many will not be able to keep themselves safe and...
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Evidence-Based Practice for Very Young Children with Autism: Delivering Family-Centered Services within a Community Programs
Evidence from randomized controlled trials supports the efficacy of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs; Schreibman et al., 2015) for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM; Rogers & Dawson, 2010) and Early Social...
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Some Key Issues in Reducing Caregiver Stress: Future Planning for the Family Member
Over the last several years, a lot of focus and attention has been given to the very important topics of transition planning and services into adulthood for those with autism and intellectual disabilities. Supporting families, caregivers and the adolescent/adult child in connecting with adult...
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The Newborn and the Child with Autism: The Advice is the Same
As a parent with a 25-year-old son with autism, I am often asked what advice I would give to parents with a newly diagnosed child. My response is the same advice I give to new mothers as a nurse on the maternity unit. Parental emotional adjustment to a new baby is analogous to the adjustment to...
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What Parents of Children with Autism Should Know About Abuse
It is true that parents of children and adults with ASD, if asked, will admit to having long-held fears that their child may become a victim of abuse. However, it is also true that when I have provided classes for parents of young and adult children with autism at Los Angeles-based Regional Centers...
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“It’s All My Fault!” Understanding Guilt in Parents of Children with ASD
Guilt is a powerful emotion. It has both motivating and destructive effects. It can be seen as a moral conscience, directing us toward doing the “right thing.” Imagine a society where there was no sense of moral guilt - this could lead to a situation where there is anarchy. Our guilt allows us...
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How Supported Decision-Making Can Help Family Caregivers
Individuals with autism should have a choice in what happens to them throughout their lives. Too often, parents of children and adults with autism, intellectual, or developmental disabilities are advised – and often when their child is very young, long before it is possible to predict their...
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The Role of the Caregiver in Enhancing Job Skills in Individuals with ASD
When parents think of what they want for their children, a fulfilling job is often included in their answer. Many caregivers want to see that their loved one can not only obtain a job, but maintain it long-term. This tends to be particularly difficult for those on the autism spectrum, as research...
