Halloween is a fun night of costumes and candy for kids of all ages. But for those on the autism spectrum, scary sounds and decorations, tight or scratchy costumes and going out at night can be a lot to handle. Helping your child know what to expect from Halloween can help make it a fun time for everyone. although I don't celebrate halloween I want to make sure its safe for my son that is on the spectrum and my daughter.

How To help your littler one get Halloween off to a good start

 It’s true. Raising a child with autism is overwhelming, to say the least, and it’s impossible to predict how each day will unfold. Even the slightest change in routine can set your little one off, leaving you feeling as though you’re constantly walking on egg shells in an attempt to keep the peace, which is exhausting.

Sometimes it feels as though no one in the entire world understands what you and your family experience on a daily basis, and other times you feel overwhelmed with gratitude for the people who go out of their way to help you.

We live in a day and age where we are expected to put everyone’s needs before our own, but what we fail to realize is that there is only so long we can live in a constant state of stress and fatigue before our bodies start to breakdown and even the smallest tasks start to feel overwhelming.

And when autism moms feel overwhelmed, the effects can be detrimental on the entire family. I’m serious! Your child’s success with various treatments and therapies is very much dependent on YOU

Of course, this all sounds great in theory, but finding ways to catch a break and recharge can feel downright impossible when you have so many demands on your time each day

One of the biggest challenges for autism moms is that, unless you’ve lived it, you cannot possibly understand what parents of autistic children experience on a daily basis

With that said, there are certain struggles most autism moms can relate to, including:

• Chronic exhaustion
• Improper diagnosis
• Long waitlists
• Lack of available resources
• Feeling socially isolated
• Feelings of guilt
• Not having enough time to focus on your child’s sibling’s 
• Financial concerns
• Worrying about the future

It’s back-to-school time! Many parents look forward to this all summer long, while others absolutely dread it. Changing your child’s schedule abruptly at the beginning of a new school year can cause lots of chaos and big emotions. Children on the autism spectrum typically feel this stress much more intensely, which can lead to after school meltdowns. If your kids struggles with this, check out these great ideas to reduce the overwhelm!

Why do after school meltdowns occur?

How is it even possible? Your child was a perfect angel all day; their teacher said so! Now they are sobbing uncontrollably and throwing things. What happened?! How can your kid have such a great day at school, then come home and completely fall apart?

So many moms struggle with this. They begin to wonder if they are a horrible parent, if the teacher is lying, or if their child despises them. The drastic change in behavior is difficult to wrap your mind around.

Believe it or not, after school meltdowns are pretty normal, especially for autistic children. Home is their safe place. They know they can get away with more at home. No, they aren’t necessarily trying to manipulate, mistreat, or use you – they just know they can be themselves without fear of unknown punishment. They don’t have to try to bottle up all of their overwhelming emotions, stress, and sensory overload any longer, so they explode.

How to reduce after school meltdowns

What are we supposed to do then? Just let them explode on us each day? While it is necessary for our kids to have a safe place, and to be able to release their bottled up emotions, we also need to teach them healthy ways to do it. That is obviously more of a challenge with special needs children. 

These sensory integration exercises require assistance, but have super results:

• Ball squashes (roll an exercise ball up and down your child, as they lay on the floor or a mat)
• Joint compressions
• Deep squeezes (slowly squeeze and release up and down your child’s arms and legs)
• Body rolls (wrap a blanket around your child and roll them from one side of the bed or floor to the other) 

 Let me tell you am that one mother who doesn’t stop at nothing less when it come to my kid’s especially when it come to education. I have my annual IEP meeting today and it’s was very successful. Having a great teacher on your team is everything. It’s on point When you're looking for help for a student who struggles with a learning disability or mental health condition, you know it's important to have a plan in place to ensure your child's special needs are being met at school. That's where the Individual Education Program (IEP) meeting comes in handy

Review IDEA

Get familiar with the IEP meeting and process before you show up for a meeting. Every school provides a copy of your rights, so make sure you request and review a copy of the manual that was provided 

Compile Your List of Questions

It's easy to forget the questions you want to ask about your child's progress at school. Simplify what you need to remember by writing down all the questions you want to ask prior to attending the meeting.

Invite People and Professionals

You don't have to face a group of IEP review members, teachers or school counselors alone. If you have your own "support team," consider inviting them to the meeting.

This was one of the best thing I have ever done is reaching out for help and let me tell you professional help is the best 

At the end of the meeting they will review the evaluations with you 

Review and Complete Evaluations and Forms

Review and sign evaluations and forms that the IEP review team has prepared. These forms typically let the team know all of the meeting's participants, and give you insight into what will be covered, such as goals for the next school year 

At last help the teachers 👩‍🏫 so they can help you. So with that said 

Create a Student Profile

As a parent, you're an expert when it comes to your child. Help your IEP team in advance with a profile to help them gain more knowledge about your child outside of school. You can include your child's strengths, learning challenges or any special accommodations they may need as part of this profile.

IEP meetings can be informative, but you will benefit even more by being prepared in advance.

For the passed 4 years all I have learned with IEP I hope what I learned could help another parent so it’s was a success for me  #schoolcounselor #schoolteacher #students #therapy #disabilityrights #livebeyondautism