Just another thing to add to the rest

I mentioned on the This is not what I signed up for Facebook page a week or so ago that we were having a difficult week. It's turned into a difficult month.

On top of the usual ASD related things we manage daily, Hubby's Bipolar symptoms have been increasing and causing him issues that have led to him needing to reduce his working hours.

As if that isn't enough we have also seen the addition of 3 other medical issues in the family over the last few weeks. I do my best not to complain, but I sure have struggled the last couple of weeks in particular to maintain a positive frame of mind.

Any one of the things we manage on its own wouldn't be that hard to deal with. Even a couple of them wouldn't be too bad.

But, honestly, I keep thinking to myself, how much more do we have to deal with here?!

I mean, every time something new comes up, it's just another thing to add to the rest. And usually involves another onslaught of paper work to be filled in. Not to mention the added emotional stress and anxiety load. Then I find it difficult to sleep, and so the tiredness cycle starts up..... and my negative thoughts sometimes get the better of me.

I struggle not to dwell on the thoughts of envy that others have so little to cope with, yet still manage to complain so much. It takes a lot of self discipline to keep my thoughts on the track of remembering that the hard times come and go, things always work out OK, and there is always something to be thankful for.

Sometimes I have to give in to a bit of a cry, and just let it all out for a while so that I can clear my mind and get on with things. But, at the end of the day- or maybe more appropriately, at the beginning of each morning- get on with things I must. So I do, most days with a smile on my face, even though I might be wondering what the next thing to add to the rest will be.

Trying to be satisfied with what I've got.

So, I entered this Blogging competition. Then I did something stupid.

6 things I wish I could explain about myself as a "Special Needs Parent"

I read an article today, called 6 Things You Don't Know About A Special Needs Parent. It was a great article. It started me thinking about what things I would like to explain to others about myself to help them understand me and maybe give an insight into why I sometimes react differently than expected. As I thought about it I realised some of my list is the same, and some is different. Here's my list of things that I wish it was easy to explain about myself as a parent of ASD kids.

A great take on Autism

I don't have a lot to say today, but I do want to share something that someone else said.  I came across this great little video, made by a young lady named Rosie who has Aspergers Syndrome. It is called My Autism and Me and you can view it by clicking here. Rosie is my hero for the week!

Goals and how we try to reach them...

This question was asked yesterday, in a fantastic online support group for ASD families- How do you talk to your child and siblings about their autism, if at all? 

This is a significant issue in our house at the moment because both ASD kids seem to be going through really obvious social awkward stages at present. Here is the answer I posted:

Why sunflowers are my favourite flower

Sunflowers are great. They start off as this tiny little seed. They sprout these two tiny little leaves. They have to manage not to be eaten by snails and slugs,