For the parent — essays & guides for families of nonverbal autistic kids
Written to you, not about your child. Grief, blame, the life you didn't expect.
4 essays in this category · Browse all 197
It is not your fault — an essay for the parent who just got the diagnosis
A parent — almost always the mother — who just received an autism diagnosis for her child and is already being blamed, silently or loudly, by herself or her family.
When the blame comes from home
Mother whose in-laws or own family are blaming her for the child's diagnosis — told she stressed during pregnancy, was negligent, sinned in past life, etc.
The career you quit to raise this child
Mother who left her job to become full-time caregiver after diagnosis, feeling ambivalent, invisible, or guilty about missing the work she was good at.
Your mother-in-law is grieving too
Parent whose relationship with mother-in-law has become difficult since the diagnosis — she's angry, distant, blaming, or pretending nothing happened.