Living with Autism

When my Boo was little boy and we didn’t yet know he had autism he used to get rampant tonsillitis. I would take him to the Doctor, get the antibiotics and then fail hopelessly at getting him to take them (because he was so sensitive to taste and smell) so the infection would escalate into something even stronger and more painful. Even with this septic mess of a throat, Boo would continue to run around and play until suddenly he would go pale and listless. I would take him back to the Doctor only to see him CRINGE as he examined the tonsils and say “They are VERY infected” then look at me like I was the worst mother in the world, write a new prescription and say firmly “complete the course” as if I was deliberately neglectful.

 I eventually found a way to get him to take his medicine (wrapped up in a towel like a cat) but it took a bit longer for me to realise that our kids do not know how to “act sick” Everybody has a different pain threshold, and Autistic people feel pain to the sa…

I am not a psychologist or behavioural specialist or a Psychiatrist.

I'm a parent and I have two teenagers with Autism who are almost adults.


So, I am not going to talk about the triad of impairments or assessment scales etc etc.


What I can tell you is that Autism is a sensory disability in which everything a person sees, hears, feels, tastes and smells is distorted.



They may see every strand of hair on your head individually with more detail than a dandruff commercial, hence the need to push your hair off your face.


And your eyes might be so distracting that they have to look away, in order to pay attention.






Originally Posted by Lisa Domican - onHammiesays - Tales from the World of Extreme Parenting.

They may taste food in individual components that make the slightest change to the recipe seem like an entirely different food.

Touch can be too light to feel or too intense to bear, or both!
And sound most unfortunately can be very distorted, either because they hear everything and…

Would you like to learn more about enabling a non-speaking person to communicate with Grace App? Well finally, after 6 years I have a set of 3 short and easy to follow video lessons on line..

Every parent (not just special needs parents) gets to experience the wonder of "Arsenic Hour" where your kids create a perfect storm of being too tired, too hungry and too damn grotty* to just put to bed.
*if they fall asleep naturally let them sleep. Bathe in the morning.


Little kids usually do this around 6 o'clock but for older kids, and those with additional needs it can be a bit later. It only happens when there are more kids than you can wrangle on your own and no energy left yourself. You know what your kids need, but where do you start?



However, here at my secret laboratory I have devised an excellent formula for overcoming this. 20 minutes before it is due to start, mix up one of these:

Then fill a hot bath FOR YOURSELF,  and drink it there. Put on a deep conditioning treatment, exfoliate everything you think needs smoothing and enjoy the aural harmony of your favourite scented bath oils mixed with your favourite tunes on your iPad. 

 Hop out when you are fully …

So today is the day that some clever marketing company decided to call "Blue Monday" I guess this is because in the Northern Hemisphere at least, it represents the peak of christmas being totally over, with Spring not even visible in the distance.
For me it was the first Monday after my lovely trip home to Australia to see my family, who I had convinced to spend a week in a caravan park at the beach. A proper post-christmas summer holiday as opposed to a stay-cation which is all too common in a place where it is actually really hot all summer.

I had a great time being super-aunty to my 3 lovely nieces, mixing kitchen cocktails for my sister and her husband, and walking on the long sandy beach at Apollo Bay, which is on the Great Ocean Road, about an hour and a half from Melbourne.

Would you like to learn more about enabling a non-speaking person to communicate with Grace App? Well finally, after 6 years I have a set of 3 short and easy to follow video lessons on line..