Autism Treasures

This we know; there are countless challenges that arise in living with children with autism. Sometimes it seems our lives revolve around them, and we have almost no time to even take a deep and centered breath.

So right now…let’s stop for a moment and take that life-giving deep breath into our bodies. Let the breath circulate within you for a second or two. Then blow it out slowly and deliberately, allowing a new thought, a new feeling to rise up within.

And now…Let’s apply that new idea, that new feeling to our relationships with autistic children.

Have you ever noticed that there are some pretty amazing everyday gifts that naturally accompany children with autism? One way to know what those gifts are is to open ourselves to the idea of following the child. In following, we have the opportunity to view the world in a different way than we had before. Magical things can happen when we are willing to uncover the buried treasure in our relationship with our children.

Knowing (or at least, believing) that your imagination is a first step in creating something new will be a good start. Imagine that your child has invited you to go on a treasure hunt. (S)he is standing in front of you now, holding a piece of paper. You open the paper and read the first clue:

~ What does my child like to do?

Let’s say that you notice your child is rocking back and forth. You observe that (s)he does this to self-soothe, so something about it must be comforting.

As you notice the behavior with curiosity and without judgment, you are now ready for the second clue:

~ How can I help my child be fulfilled in a way that is joyful, and that we might possibly experience together?