Making the Decision

Deciding either to take your son or daughter out of school or not to send them to school is a HUGE desicion.

It is like taking a step into the dark.

Many people will advise you in numerous ways.

The best advice we can give you is to follow your instinct.

Everyone is different. It may be that son-rise is not the right option for you. What we really think it is important to do is to look at ALL the options. When you’re child is diagnosed, the information they give you is quite limited, so we would really encourage you to research and talk to other parents/groups/ professionals.

One thing for sure is that you are the people best placed to know what is best for your child.

And one more thing to remember is that, you really can make progress with autism and your child is capable and intelligent and does have massive potential just like all our children.

 

If you are thinking that son-rise or a home based therapy would be suitable for you, this might help:

We know that making the decision to try a home education programme is a huge step and one taken in the midst of trying to manage the feelings of diagnosis, the pain of the prognosis and just the general day to day living with our special children which makes it even more difficult and all consuming.

What we do know is that taking this step helped us regain some sanity and also reach our little boy in a way that we hadn’t before.

If you’re at the beginning of your journey we’d like to share some of our experiences and lessons, and those from other lovely families, which may help.

Take a look at the webinar ‘breakthrough strategies’ by Raun Kaufman on the autismtreatmentcentre.org website.

http://www.autismtreatmentcenter.org/contents/other_sections/strategies-autism-treatment.php

This clearly explains the fundamentals of the son rise programme and helps you understand the importance of joining and why working on a social curriculum is so crucial to our children.

Taking a look at the ‘Getting Started’ information on the autismtreatmentcentre.org. The ‘practical strategies to apply now’  really helped us. I know that they often sound easier than they are but not responding so quickly to Henry’s screaming, tantrums and aggressive was a huge one for us. They’re may be one that’s more applicable to your family but might make as much as a difference.

http://www.autismtreatmentcenter.org/contents/getting_started/practical_strategies.php

In the beginning the most important piece of advice I can give is to take it slowly. There is so much to take in and to do but you really need to take the pressure off yourselves. Just by spending 10 minutes a day joining with your child will be a great introduction and will be therapy for you both. Rome really isn’t built on a day and you will always feel like you’re not doing enough, I still do, but we can’t do everything at once.

Seeing little changes and building rapport with your child will also spur you on and give you evidence to carry on. That said, equally, don’t expect miracles. This isn’t a quick fix. It is a huge undertaking. Step by step you will create a programme to suit your child and your family. From little acorns do grow big oak trees.

Firstly, enjoy your child. You don’t need the playroom and volunteers and mirrors and observation window straight away, don’t let this put you off. In the beginning we used Henry’s bedroom just taking the toys and clutter out so it was distraction free. We stayed in there for 6 months before making the decision to run the programme full time and then we did use a different room but other families do use their children’s bedrooms. Where is not so important as how or why.