According to Autism Speaks, Autism affects 1 in 110 children, and 1 in 70 boys. My son has Asperger's Syndrome, which is on the autism spectrum. Living with an autistic child is the most difficult thing I have ever encountered. The stress is unbelievable. I've been searching for answers on how families deal with this. I have found a few articles online that I thought I should share with other families who are living with autism.
Adrianne Horowitz, C.S.W., contributed an article to The Autism Society of America site regarding "Stress on Families." She suggests prayer, exercise, yoga, deep breathing, writing in a journal, keeping a daily schedule of things to accomplish, and individual, marital or family counseling, among other ideas.
The site has a search engine for services.
Walks to raise funds and promote awareness for Autism Speaks are being held throughout the U.S. and Canada. To see if a walk is scheduled for your area, check here. Check out their social networking sites, too.
I found this article on parenting a child with Asperger's, and another on How Do Families Learn to Cope?
I'm curious to learn how other families are dealing with stress. It seems to get worse near the end of the school year, when the pressure begins to mount, even for families of typically-developing kids.
