What to do first
1. Take a deep breath and realize you are not "alone".
Please do not blame yourself.
You did nothing wrong.
2. You and your family will go through a "Cycle of Grief" starting
with "shock & depression", then denial and guilt, shame and isolation,
panic, anger, bargaining and hope and acceptance. This is normal.
When you are ready, please reach out to other parents in your local
autism community by joining an autism group "online, attend, join or
contact local autism related organizations and support groups. You
will learn valuable information from other parents and they will know
exactly what you are going through.
3. Download a survival kit from autism speaks.
"100 Day Kit" from Autism Speaks
4. Research the different methodologies and autism related therapies including but not limited to:
speech therapy, occupational therapy, sensory integration therapy, ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis),
biomedical treatments (DAN - Defeat Autism Now) as well as special education services.If your child is 0 - 3 years of age, TEIS or Tennessee Early Intervention System can coordinate services
Tennessee Early Intervention SystemIf your child is 3 - 5 years of age, contact Child Find in your child's school district. Please keep in mind that they may want to do their own testing even if your child has already received an "Autism" diagnosis. Contact information for Knox County Child Find is 865 - 594 - 1530.
If your child is 5 years of age or older, contact your local school district regarding special education services. Your child should receive a FAPE (free, appropriate public education) and they should have an IEP (Individual Education Plan). For more information regarding IEP's or special education, please contact STEP (Support and Training for the Exceptional Parents)
Support and Training for Exceptional Parents
5. Research internet about "autism, visit local libraries (read most recent editions, please!) Please do
not overwhelm yourself - you cannot possibly learn everything in one day or week or month. Please
pace yourself! Below you will find a few suggestions for newly diagnosed families:The First Year: Autism Spectrum Disorders - An Essential Guide for Newly Diagnosed
Crossing Bridges: A parent's perspective on coping after a child is diagnosed with autism (FREE - Autism Society of America - East Tennessee Chapter www.asaetc.org )
Autism for Dummies by Stephen Shore (an adult with autism)
You are going to love this Kid by Dr. Paula Kluth (school and inclusion)
Children with Starving Brains by Dr. Jacqueline McCandless
6. Keep in mind that parents do the best they can for their children and don't expect PERFECTION of yourself in EVERY situation or circumstance. Also you might want to consider reading the link on this
website "Ten Things that Every Child with Autism wishes you knew"Thanks to the ongoing research and the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), new therapies and treatments, and loving parents like yourself, the FUTURE for our children is brighter and full of hope. Please know that you still have a good life even though it may not have been the life you had planned.
So with this in mind, please take a moment to read the following article:
Welcome to HollandTop Autism Therapies
These factsheets include a review of the scientific evidence supporting the use of each particular therapy as well as a list of resources you can turn to should you choose to implement the therapy. Please also look at the advertisements on our pages. In many cases, those products were carefully chosen by us to support the therapies described in this Web site. The twelve most popular therapies, which include comprehensive factsheets, are:
