Posts under ‘autism’

A Different World

Image credit: Photo by
evilnick on Flickr
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Our family keeps a pretty rigorous schedule, with nearly every night of the week blocked out for some activity or another, but rather than shuttling between soccer games and dance practice, like many parents in our social group, we're shuttling between different 12 Step meetings.
So, a [...]

If You Only Knew

"What am I going to say to people? I mean, they're going to ask, 'What are you doing these days?' and what am I supposed to do? I don't know how to make small talk anymore, let alone tell them what's been going on," I told my friend Jess after she met me [...]

When Yelling Works

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Scream 101 on Flickr
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There's a reason I'm not a journalist. It's one of those jobs you always think about, if you're one of those people (like me) who has considered careers in writing.  But I always saw two problems with it: 1) I need to let things [...]

Lullaby

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Big Grey Mare on Flickr
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"Honey?" Mark has been putting the kids to sleep.  I thought he'd fallen asleep with them, but now he pops his head into the living room. "Austen says his stomach hurts and he can't get to sleep.  Can you come take a look and [...]

A Teacher Can Make All the Difference

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Temari 09 on Flickr
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A year and a half ago, I posted a story about an autistic boy named Alex Barton, whose teacher had asked the other students to vote him out of his kindergarten class. Periodically, people write and ask what's up with Alex and how he's doing [...]

Nightmares

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samzie2006 on Flickr
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I woke up this morning, muscles clenched like a fist and throat tight with anxiety, wanting to grab my son and never let him go. I crept to where he was sleeping and ran my fingers through his curls, reassuring myself he was there and safe. [...]

Tallying up my Self-Worth

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boxercab on Flickr
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Last Monday I walked through the grocery store feeling like a weight was crushing my chest, a tight lump in my throat the only thing between me and tears. And part of me wanted to self-indulgently sit there on the linoleum floor under the flicker fluorescent [...]

Beware of the 8-Year-Old

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codepo8 on Flickr
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Most kids (at least those who grow up in safe, middle class, American neighborhoods) don't see every new face at the front door (from evangelists to pizza delivery guys) as a potential threat.  But Austen is not most kids.  Unless they come bearing an Amazon.com box with [...]

Conspiracy Theories

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CowGummy on Flickr
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It started off innocently enough years ago. She would forward me the usual stories warning me that I should watch out for snakes in McDonald's ball pits or people out to steal my kidneys or serial killers who would lure me out of the house using [...]

What Autism Is Supposed to Look Like

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cproppe on Flickr
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We took the kids to a pool party at the home of some friends of mine recently. The hosts, as well as several guests, moved a fair drive away from us several years ago, and several more guests were visiting from out of town. As [...]