Autism and special needs · Father of a child with extra needs
Topics that may interest you
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- The Changing Role of Fathers at HomeBath time, school runs, braiding hair, doctor's appointments. Fathers doing more of the daily care than their own fathers did, what has changed, what still hasn't, and why a father's presence matters for children.
- The Father Who Is Home but Not ThereHe comes home, eats, sleeps, pays the bills, and the house still feels like something is missing. What an absent-while-present father takes from a home, and a word to the father himself.
- Mom Says No, Dad Says Yes: When a Child Plays Parents Against Each OtherYour child asks one parent, gets a no, then asks the other and gets a yes. Why children learn to work the gap between parents, why a shifting boundary feels like weather, and two sentences that close the gap without a fight.
- "I Feel Like an ATM": When a Husband and Father Feels Unappreciated at HomeHe works hard, comes home, and hears only requests for money. Why many husbands and fathers feel like an ATM, why it's real and not an excuse, and what a wife and children can say to change it.
- Separated Dad, Living Away From Your Kids: A Letter on Staying Close From a DistanceA letter to the father living away from his children after separation. Visits, outings, an understanding with their mother, why the child must never carry messages, and why stubbornness costs you your children.
- Single Dad Raising Kids Alone: The First Months, the Anger, and What Makes It EasierFor the father who suddenly finds himself raising his children alone. Why it hits so hard at first, how it gets easier with habit, what to do with the anger, and why keeping it away from your children is the best thing you can give them.
- "You're Not My Real Dad!" What a Stepparent Can SayA stepchild shouts "You're not my real dad" or "You're not my mom." What the sentence is really saying, the reply that keeps both the truth and your place, and who should be doing the discipline.
Brothers and sisters
Grandparents and the wider family
Children with extra needs
- Before They Read the Report: Introduce Your Child as a PersonTeachers, therapists and carers often meet an autistic child through a report first. A one-page profile written with your child, so the people around them meet the person before the diagnosis.
- Preparing for a School Meeting About Your Child's SupportHow to get ready for a meeting with school about your child's needs: gather a few clear examples from home and school, ask three questions, and leave with names and dates. You don't need a pile of evidence to speak up.
- The Parent Who Carries It: For Parents of Children With Extra NeedsEveryone on your child's team has a job description and a day off. You have neither. Two questions to ask yourself each week, a list worth writing once, and what to hand to someone else.
- Speech Delay in Toddlers: When to Worry, and How to Help Your Child Talk at HomeYour toddler isn't talking yet, or says very few words. The official signs by age that mean see a professional, why hearing is checked first, and how a home full of talk helps a child learn to speak.
- Signs of Autism in an Older Child: What to Do When It Shows Up at 8, 10 or 12Your older child struggles to make friends, stays alone behind a closed door, or seems afraid of people. The official signs of autism in older children, why it is often noticed late, what to do first, and how to help him into the world.