Don’t forget you

If I could tell you anything at all about raising a child with a disability I would say, “you’ve got this, you are going to be okay and it will make sense one day.”

I would then encourage you to let go of the idea of what you had hoped being a parent would look like, it’s not for you. Something more amazing is in store for you.
This has been so important for me to make way for what being an Autism mum has given me in return.

I have been challenged in every way I know how to grow. I have been given patience I did not know I had in me,  I see the world in so many different ways as the result of always looking at different perspectives and I am a stronger person for the experience after 23 years of being an Autism mum.

Laughter….some days you will laugh at the way your child works and at the things your child says…and some days you will cry a lot and that is okay too. I have learnt so much about love through never hearing my child say “I love you.” He thinks the words are unnecessary. I can now find the “I love you” in other words or actions such as “can you come with me I am afraid” or “trying to clean their rooms without being asked”. These things will be important. Find your people, connect in with other disability mums they will be your backbone of support and you will learn so much from each other.

A word of warning…..don’t forget you… I know I have been guilty of forgetting my own pursuits and am only just learning now how to explore them. Please don’t forget you.  I still have a long time to go ahead of me but I trust that I can make time for me too a little better than I have in the past.

I wish you all the laughter, joy, tears, growing pains and success in this new life as you embark on it.  It won’t be easy… it won’t,  but it will be worth it.