Every month, new medical studies are being published that demonstrate a clear connection between environmental toxins and neurological conditions such as ADHD, autism, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities and mood disorders. The Children’s Environmental Health Network and Physicians for Social Responsibility frequently post these studies on their websites. The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities [...]
Albert Einstein was two and a half years old when he saw his baby sister Maja for the first time. He immediately asked, “Yes, but where does it have its small wheels?” He had been told that he would be able to play with the baby, and he fully expected this new toy to come [...]
Last week I wrote a post about some of the most popular summer camps for kids and adults with special needs. Due to high interest in summer camps I have compiled 19 more great summer camps for individuals with special needs. Many of these are hometown favorites suggested by readers of this blog, and some are [...]
‘Tis the season to register for summer camps. If you think that your child’s special needs will prevent him or her from participating in a summer camp, it’s time to think again. Many camps offer specialized medical care for specific disabilities or one-on-one buddies, while other camps provide tutoring for individuals with learning disabilities in [...]
Since 2011, the Twitter party with the hashtag #youmightbeanautismparentif has been alive and kicking. Every comment offers a little snapshot of the inner lives of families who love someone with autism. At times the conversation is poignant, but in the last few weeks it’s been mostly humorous. Here are 16 recent highlights from the party [...]
Parents, therapists and educators who buy emotion flash cards have high hopes. Face-blindness and an inability to recognize emotions are factors in some cases of brain injury, autism and other neurological conditions. At this time, there is no known treatment for face-blindness, and results from teaching emotion recognition have been inconsistent. But we can still [...]
One day, I met the friend of a friend at an indoor play area, and we swapped stories of our sons’ diagnosis and therapies. The other mom was really struggling with her son’s recent diagnosis, and she was asking me some very pointed and personal questions about my son’s development, in the curious way that [...]
Do you know someone who isn’t sure whether or not to pursue a medical diagnosis for a developmentally delayed son or daughter? According to the Centers for Disease Control, most children with autism are diagnosed after age 4. Certain other developmental and learning disabilities are usually not diagnosed until a child enters elementary school. These [...]
It’s very entertaining to sit on my living room floor at night and clean out my purse. I never really know what I’m going to find in there, and I always find something that I had thought lost. It’s even more entertaining when my purse accidentally gets dumped out in public, which happens rather often. [...]
Many people are considering their personal goals or resolutions for the new year. For families of children with special needs, inclusion in the wider community is usually on that list of goals. Here’s a list of 10 ways to include a child with special needs in the new year. 10. Fulfill sensory needs at all [...]
