Tell Me Your Story, Special Edition: Parenting and Autism, Part 5

In the special edition series of episodes, we address relevant topics for our community.

In this 5 part series, we will talk about Parenting and Autism.  We will have input from Ellen Shapiro-Smith, Melissa Maher, Melissa Minaya and Allison Patenaude who will be telling us about their personal experiences with Autism as a parent.

We will learn from each guest about their journey, from searching for the diagnose, learning about correct treatment, reactions from relatives and close friends and acquiring appropriate school settings for their children. They also share their unique experience adjusting to their children’s place in the Autism broad spectrum as well as monitoring their challenges and progress.

In the 5th and final episode for this Special Edition, Edgar talks to Allison Patenaude to hear her story. Allison talks about her son, Nathan, who is now 12 years old and in the level 3 of the autism spectrum, non-verbal.  He is also diagnosed with ADHD and was recently diagnosed with seizure syndrome (epilepsy). Allison started noticing a change in Nathan’s communication interactions around 18 month of age and sought professional help to find out what was the reason. Among many important things Allison emphasizes the importance of community, good professional help like the ones she found in the New England Center for Children and later in the Hopeful Journey School in Beverly, MA.  She also praises the devices that have helped Nathan, such as PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) and AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication). Allison offers many insights in her experience through this journey, and in one of them she talks about grief and the struggles to understand what we are feeling and why we are feeling this way as well as the worries of her child’s future.