Get to Know Each Other Forum

Hi,
I just started here today and was wondeing if there was a forum or can one be started for parents to get to know each other. Introduce themselves and talk about daily happenings and such.

Just a thought.

Thanks!

Julie

Hi jmomee99! Parents can absolutely share their experiences and meet each other on the IAN Forums, although this will tend to take place around a "research-focused" topic, like the "Mothers and Depression" topic posted in the IAN Research Findings Forum.

A "sister-Discussion Forum" to ours that is more general parent-to-parent support and advocacy focused will be opening VERY soon on the Autism Speaks site. That will be a great place to share daily happenings with other parents in the same circumstances.

Once our sister-forum at Autism Speaks is in place, we hope you will be able to have the best of both worlds by skipping back and forth between our "research-focused" forum and their "parent-to-parent support" forum.

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Hey, Julie, I just joined today and was wondering the same thing...My name is Jackqui,I`m really interestd in this site I think it`s a good thing to
be able to get in touch with other people that have autisim......

I can hardly wait to see the new Autism Speaks message board. I hope it's as nice as this one, we'll have to wait and see. Thanks for the info Connie, it's definitely worth waiting for. ;)

Howdy!

Autism gives new meaning to the whole networking thing, doesn't it? Good day, here. ESY ARD was this morning...Woo Hoo! Almost lost the Lion's ESY because he wasn't showing enough regression data. An advocate helped me find part of the TX Edu. Code that sez he's still eligible if we "believe regression is imminent." Show me an ASD kid who can go an entire summer of zero services w/o regression and I'll show you a winning lotto ticket!

Oh, and I answer to julie, too. Some days, I think no one knows me other than as liamsvoice!

It's great to have a forum like this but what about a physical place to meet as well in various cities for parents to chat and take a break from it all. I am developing a place for this purpose in one Brooklyn area. It is needed.

Hi, I have two sons ages 12 and almost 14 diagnosed with Aspergers so having a place like this to touch base with other parents is great. There's an autism support group here, but I have yet to attend one meeting. I have an older son and a younger daughter without ASD. I'm interested in sharing my info and experiences for research and to help other parents, and also to gain some insight as to what will happen as my sons get older and...eventually...make their own way. Somehow, age 18 has taken on a whole other meaning.

Hi..

I have an eight year old granddaughter who is Autistic. She is the joy of my life and I am doing all that I can to adapt to her. Just wanted to check in.

Granny

Hello Everyone,

I think this is the best thing that has happened in a long time. I look forward to meeting and talking to other mothers and caregivers. It is nice to know that there is somewhere to go for advise from people who understand.

Hi,

I go by the name Lavender. This is my first day with IAN. I have a son that has been diagnosed with PDD and Bi Polar. I am interested in meeting other parents who have kids with the similar diagnosis. He was diagnosed 5 years ago. His progress seems to be going very slow and I was wondering what other parents are doing because it seems like I cannot find appropriate therapist to work with him.

Hi im amanda and I have an autistic brother that is 8 although I do not live with him I did move in with him for 2 months to see what it was like.. he opened ny eyes and showed me the world without saying a word... I couldn't believe it... I barley met him 3 years ago as well as my biological father and have developed a family relationship with him 2 hours away... I am now 18 and still have no clue as to how much detail is in the disorder! Will my brother ever talk or will his life be an amazing mistery for me to find out on my own? Let me know if you have any questions or have had similar experiences.

Amanda (autistic_brothers_sis89)

I am Christine's husband with a 3 year old high functioning autistic child. I did send a message to someone but don't see where it went so I will try again.
I just read an article in Parade Magazine about autisim and again I was disappointed because there was nothing new to read about. It reads like the author copied the other articles I have about autism. And think diet is a cure all and vaccinations could be the cause. It's not; it's a genetic disorder. My son has no diet because he has sensory processing disorder which means for now he has a tast for starchy foods and is very senstive to his surroundings.
My wife and I have search and continue to search about anything on autism. We know about Teech the Kreigher center in Baltimore and so forth. What we don't read about is how to manage a child with autism for the parents. My wife and I are exhausted and broke because my son has severe bowl issues and the doctors don't have an answer yet which means we have been to the ER many times and my son has had many test to find what the cause is. Also my son has speech therapy and OT twice a week which we had to stop because of the cost factor. We don't have a house and live very modestly. All we want is for our son to be happy and find what is causing him so many bowl problems. Because of his bowl issues he has missed pre-school because he gets so sick from it. He likes going to school very much and his classmates. The problem is it's a class with six children with low function autism and my son is not which means it's difficult for him to talk to the other children. Also the school he attends is on the other side of town which means there is no one for him to play with which I am in the process of getting my son change to a closer school at the start of the new school year.
My son would like to play with other like minded children but where we live there is no one around his age and the children he does play with either move or their mother takes them inside because she doesn't understand my son. This happens more then you think and it upsets me but what can I do? Also I am tired of parents who have all the answers when you tell them your child is autistic. I don't need that; I just want my child to have a friend to play with and find someone to watch my child so my wife and I can go out to dinner. To be honest we don't like leaving our child with anyone and we where told it's not healhly for us or him. We are still looking....
We love our son very much and only want what is best for him. We don't try to cure him; we just try our best to love him and keep him comfortable. My son loves the world and embraces it with arms wide open. We know the signs when he the world starts to bother him and we remove him from the sitution or change the sitution. It doesn't always work and we do get stares but we just ignore them. We will not keep our son from going out just because there are people who don't want to understand not everyone is "perfect". We take our son everywhere and he knows how to behave but he does have his moments, some worse then others but we don't stop going out because of this.
So if you see a happy, smiling 3 year old boy who comes up to you to say "hi" it could be my son so just say "hi" and listen to what he has to say and he will move on. He won't bite but he will give you a hug if you want one.

Your brother just wants your love and he knows love. I don't know the severity of the autsim so I cannot answer if he will talk to you. He knows who you are and just wants your understanding. You won't be able to understand all his quirks but he doesn't want you to; just listen to him and be there for him. You will know the more time you spend with him what he wants and he will get to know you better. I am so glad you are beginning to understand autism and have an open mind about it. Just read all you can about it talk to therapist who deal with autistic children. They will give you answers to your questions also. Hope this helps you and just keep giving your brother all the love he can handle and listen to him always.

autistic_brothers_sis89 wrote:

Hi im amanda and I have an autistic brother that is 8 although I do not live with him I did move in with him for 2 months to see what it was like.. he opened ny eyes and showed me the world without saying a word... I couldn't believe it... I barley met him 3 years ago as well as my biological father and have developed a family relationship with him 2 hours away... I am now 18 and still have no clue as to how much detail is in the disorder! Will my brother ever talk or will his life be an amazing mistery for me to find out on my own? Let me know if you have any questions or have had similar experiences.

Amanda (autistic_brothers_sis89)

Hi CEDingman. I had replied to your post in the IAN Research Report #4 forum, but I know it can be hard to relocate items once some time has passed. There is a search function up at the top of the forum which you can try -- that's how I found your old post: by searching on your name.

I just wanted to say that I think many parents struggle with finding playmates for their children on the spectrum. (You are definitely not alone in that experience.) It is just a fact that there are some people who cannot handle it, who take their kids and leave as though your kid had something catching. I remember seeking out the most deserted playgrounds I could find when my son was your son's age, because I found it so difficult to cope with. I'm sure the GI issues you are coping with add another level of difficulty.

I myself found the sense of social isolation truly terrible, especially when my son was younger. I have found that he has made some friends with time, mostly with children who are also on the spectrum -- kids who are in school with him. (He's in a special middle school class for kids with high functioning autism.) I have also found that parents of children with other issues (whatever they may be -- from autism to ADHD to learning disabilities) seem to be more willing to accommodate other kids who are different. Finding groups of local parents, whether in autism advocacy organizations or organizations for kids with special needs in general (like Special Olympics), are places to find other parents who may be better able to relate.

Of course, there are always some truly wonderful people who are able to accommodate even when their children have no issues at all, but they are sometimes a bit harder to identify. When my son was in Cub Scouts, for example, there were some people who were not tolerant of his needs, but others who bent over backwards to make things work for him. Part of what we can do is help educate other parents, so that they understand our children's needs, challenges, and strengths. I hope families will use this website, sharing materials from the "About ASD" section especially, to help educate others in their community, neighborhood, or school.

Good Morning!! This is my first time on this web site. I just wanted to post a message to let parents of autistic children know that your child can lead a normal life. If you get the help your child needs at a early age they will grow as a person. When my now 18 yr. old son was between the ages of 18 mos. & 3yrs I noticed something different. All of my friends kids the same age were starting to learn to talk, but my son couldn't. He would throw horrible tantrums and back then I didn't have a clue as to why. I watched the movie Rain Man with Dustin Hoffman and discovered that my son had alot of the tendancies as the character in the movie. I went to our local public library and checked out every book they had on autism, which was a total of maybe 2 or 3. I was amazed to see that my son had 13 of the 15 characteristics of being an autistic child. Back then doctors kept telling me he was just a little delayed and he would be okay. I had to find and get help from an organization here in town. He started school at the age of 3 1/2. He is now in his senior year of highschool and will be graduating in May of 2008. He can even hold a job. To all the parents of autistic children, please know that your child can and will lead a normal life. It will be a hard road, but you and your child will make it. Me and my son Chris did and I am so proud of the man he grew up to be!!!!!