Navigating the holiday season when your child was just diagnosed with Autism

• Was your child recently diagnosed with Autism? 
  

• Are you concerned about getting questions from family members or friends during the holiday season about your child’s recent Autism diagnosis?

 
Typically when someone hears the word Autism there are a lot of questions that come up, from the causes, to what it means for a child when they are diagnosed with it. As a parent who has a child that was recently diagnosed with Autism, it can be difficult to make sense of all the information about Autism.
 
Regardless of any Autism diagnosis, we want our child to be set up for success. During this time of year, questions may come up from concerned family members or friends about our child’s recent Autism diagnosis.
 
I wanted to provide some tips to help you navigate this time as a parent.

If friends or family members bring up your child’s Autism diagnosis during the holidays, do the following:

• Emphasize that a diagnosis of Autism does not take anything away from your child and nothing is “wrong” with your child – your child wants to learn, play, grow, and love – no diagnosis will take this away. 

 

• If friends or family members do express concern or give unsolicited parenting advice they are usually coming from a good place and wanting to help. We can simply tell them “thank you for your input, I am still learning about Autism and how to best support my child, and this process takes time”

 

• Make time for yourself during the busy holidays – let’s be honest the holidays are stressful. As parents we need to focus on our self-care this time of year so we can manage the stresses we may feel. Remember prioritizing your own self-care is not selfish!

​
I truly hope you and your friends and family have a safe and enjoyable holiday season.

See you soon!
Michael Jankowski, MS, OTR/L