Hi my 7 year old son was just diag. with a high functioning autisium spectrum disorder. does any one know if and what things he may be able to get help for? i'm Very new to all of this :) Thanks for any info.

If your income level is below poverty level, I know your son can apply for SSI with social security. That would give you a monthly check for him and insurance. I know if you make more than that, you are not allowed to apply for social security. I know there are National Autistic groups that help with respite, teaching methods, support and information. I'd suggest doing a serch for one in you area. What type of help are you looking for (finances, support, autistic info, insurance etc.) Let me know and I think about any resources I have used.

Keep us posted,
Lorie :angel:

:wave: Hi thanks for the reply, i'm not sure i called one support group near me and they gave me a lot of info. but i'm really not sire part of me is still processing every thing and soo... i didn't know that they could help with any thing right now i'm just trying to inform. my self in knowing what is aval. to him. I wasn't sure about DDD
(disablity) fianacially we are ok ...we do get medicade for the kids....what exactly is respite care i've heard of it but I don't now for sure :dizzy:

Respite care is someone that will come in and give the regular caregivers a break. Whether it is for the parents to get out for an evening, for you to get some rest or to spend time with other family members. Caring for a person with disabilities can really drani a person after time and it is important for the caregivers, the other family members and the child for the caregivers to get away and do things that have nothing to do with the life of the child.

I had a daughter with a heart condition and I was the sole caregiver. For the longest time I did not accept help because it was my child and I felt I was the one who needed to care for her. I knew her needs, likes, medications etc. But I did find out that my daughter was going to live with her special needs for a long time and if I got burned out...things would be worse. When I signed up to get some respite care...it made a huge difference. I highly encourage you to look into it. (Also, if you have other children...it takes a toll out on them with a lot of your attention going towards the special needs of the other child. They will come to really appreciate the time that can be spent with them, which in turn makes it easier for them to deal with the day to day life that often revolves around the other child).

If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.

Lorie :angel:

I almost feel guilty if i ask for help because he is gifted but has the aspergers ( high funtioning autism) so he doesn't have meds. he is bright functions fine but he is very senstive but very strong we don't have sitters or any thing we went to fred myers and found they had child care and i really liked the lady in there and we would leave him ther but when we got back lolol she was very nice but would look like this :dizzy: he loves to talk about his fav. shows lol and storys or what every soo we run and check on hime every 15 min. to make sure nobody is getting frustrated with him :D that lady doesn't work there any more .... :rolleyes: ......do they still do the recpite care for that type (he can be relentless like today )???

Absolutly...my daughter was an average kid. Anyone who knew her assumed she had a normal health and lifestyle. She went to a regular day care, then a public elementry school. By looking at her, you could not see anything out of the ordinary. But being her caregiver, includes not only taking care of her, but consumeing your time watching her, worrying about her future, taking her to the Drs. and in my case to the hospital when ever she got a cold (Because a cold could kill her). She really got 70% of my attention and my other 2 kids got 30%. That was a hard adjustment for the other 2 kids. Respite care is more than just getting a babysitter or day care provider who will watch your child...it is more care for the emotional well being for the family.

Let me know if you have questions about finding a respite care agency (or if you have any more questions).

Lorie :angel:

yes, if you could help me find the respite care.I have 4 kids and i think its the same att. 70% for my 7 year old 30 % for my others....I'm hoping to find some sort of a balance now that we know theres a diag. it aleady helps put us on a path ...I think i found a support group they are suppose to call tomarrow i left a mes. on friday... is there any financail progarms for classes or any thing i'm not aware of ....:D like evrey thing :D

Hi there, I googled the term "autism respite" and got a number of sites. One that had lots of info. and could help locate help in your area was called "national respite locator service". If you google that, it will give you the website info. I will let you know if I learn anything else.

Hugs and prayers,
Lorie :angel: