Participation in Life
Many times I hear parents scream...."I want my life back!"
We are running off to therapy and other disability specific activities every waking moment trying to give our child the best start possible. Keep in mind that your child is one member of an entire family and your child's best future will be dependent on your family's best quality of life. Given the high rate of divorce, given the fact that you may have other children that also deserve a quality childhood, you might want to consider that your limited energy be put into the family activities that help to benefit everybody in your household.
Also consider the fact that your child with autism's best chance in the future is if he is able to negotiate and be comfortable in this world with others. Consider that helping your child to "participate in life" is a wonderful long-term goal.
What does it take to "participate in life"? Well, first a person has to have basic survival skills.....like being able to communicate some basic items such as "I need a drink". It also means being able to wait, at least for a very short time. Once your child has some survival skills, next they need some skills that allow them to interact with others. For example, being able to take a turn or being able to follow simple rules. After that, skills for independence such as asking for assistance when needed or being able to stay on a task. Later on, some basis "life skills" like keeping oneself safe and learning to self monitor will all contribute to being able to "participate in life".
A continuum of skills throughout a lifetime that focus on being able to participate in life can be incorporated into everyday activities. You can work on these type skills when you go shopping, when you are at home doing daily activities, even when you are at Grandma's house. Anyplace!
You can also request that your intervention services help your child to develop along this continuum. See a sample continuum of participation in life skills.
You can make your own continuum based on your family's preferences as well as your child's current skill levels. Use a tool such as this to help as you develop goals that are incorporated into your master plan.
LIFE IS YOUR PROGRAM! You have opportunities each and everyday to work on all these valuable participation skills. These type skills will make the winning difference as your child matures and is better able to participate in life.