Introductions

Blogging is a new concept to me, but something that has been suggested as a way for me to share with others going through a similar situation, what life is like with 2 of my 3 gorgeous children being on the Autistic Spectrum and how we all cope with family life on a daily basis. 

Days can be filled with tears, laughter, tantrums and meltdowns, but I wouldn’t change my 3 cheeky monkeys for anything in the world.  They all have their own personalities and different ways at looking at how the world works.  I see one of my roles as a mum is learning how to understand them and give them strategies to deal with whatever life throws at them, rather than them having to change their way of thinking, so that the world understands them.

·      My eldest child is a daughter and is 10 years old.  She was diagnosed 2 ½ years ago with Aspergers with Challenging Behaviour, Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and Sensory Processing Difficulties.  Her main passion in life is drama and being the best at whatever she does. 

·      My middle child is a son and is 8 years old.  He is the ‘neurotypical’ one of the bunch and copes with a lot for someone so young, as he is often caught in the middle of his two ASD siblings.  He loves playing rugby and follows Wales and the British Lions.

·      My youngest child is a son and he has just turned 5.  He was diagnosed almost 3 years ago as being on the continuum of the Autistic Spectrum.  This has now been identified as Aspergers with Challenging Behaviour, Selective Mutism and Sensory Processing Difficulties.  He loves being outdoors and his current goal in life is to be a ‘gibbon’ when he grows up!

My name is Joanne; I am married, 40 years old and on a continuous journey to learn how to turn ASD into a positive attribute for all of my children.  I have been on numerous parenting courses, studied an ASD course with Open University and just completed an Aspergers course run by the National Autistic Society (NAS).  I am no expert by any stretch of the imagination and many of the tips I have learnt have been from speaking to other parents going through similar experiences. 

My goal for this blog is to share things that have worked for us as a family and to learn new things that work for other families.