When you hear Thomais speak you may not realize – immediately – she’s on the autism spectrum.
She’s verbal now. She’s expressive. She understands life. She can be funny and irreverent.
All of the above do not guarantee our travels will be smooth, fun.
Autism’s diverse characteristics claim their territory differently in every person. That is why creating this video helps me help her before departure…
It may help us once we reach our destination.
How? If she becomes anxious and does not respond to the flow of the moment; she can see herself – sharing what she likes, what concerns her. She’ll be her own source of information and reaffirm how special this opportunity is.
Parents with kids that are non-verbal!
— the job magnifies, the needs are greater.
The same premise applies – input of information, exposure to videos and sounds is useful.
Any form of communication used can help this process.
Seven years ago, when Thomais stopped talking – I was clueless about this new reality.
My child no longer said yes, no, hungry, give me, love. All was gone from one day to the next.
Outings were simply nasty or a few here and there, just magical. The nasty ones, we learned to deal with them – and not one single book helped during this process. We learned by adapting. We learned by being patient. We learned by trying to understand.
Every time my child bolted or slammed her body on the floor, screaming, kicking, speaking gibberish — I took a deep breath and concentrated on my child, her needs.
We’ve been there. It took a lot of work and we survived.
Our challenges are different now – we adapt. We create a plan. We remain flexible.
It is easier no doubt. We are grateful.
