I had to share Autism Daddy's post on what to say/do when dealing with an Autism parent if you are wanting to be helpful and/or supportive. He gathered links and info from several great articles and picked out his favorite to highlight in his blog (he also included the links to the articles so we all can check out the rest of the advice and tips).
If you have ever wondered about what you could or should say and/or do
when faced with a family dealing with Autism, please read these tips and advice by following the above link to Autism Daddy's blog. :) If you personally know a child with Autism and the family who is doing their best to care for him/her, then please read the blog and spread the word. That family will be honestly grateful for the caring effort shown and you will have learned a lot of helpful ways to be well, helpful. :)
Thanks everyone. :)
P.S.
It also might prove insightful for you to check out the comments underneath his blog post by other parents. ;) :)
As far as something I would add?
ReplyDelete1)Please don't offer to help if it's only to be polite and you're hoping I will say "no" and/or have no real intentions on following through. I would rather no offer be made then to have several empty ones fill my head, waste my time, and deflate my faith in my fellow humans.
2)If you see a child running and the parent hopelessly trailing behind, please don't open doors, clear paths, or otherwise help the child's "escape". Especially if you can clearly hear the parent frantically pleading for someone to "stop that kid" so they can catch up. If we're asking you to stop our child, we're not going to turn around and attack you because you put your hand out to grab him, reached out and pulled him back, or simply slammed a door shut in his face (in an attempt to keep him from getting outside). More than likely we'll be thanking you immensly once we catch up in between scolding and hugging our child, trying to calm down our little bolter, and catching our breath.