Respite from Aspergers

Respite from Aspergers has finally come our way. We have been offered four hours youth worker time, per week, from The Early Intervention Service.

The youth worker will take boy on enjoyable social activities and weave social skill training and anger management into conversations.

Boy has nominated fishing and computer games as activities he would like to do with the Youth Worker. The Youth Worker is a youngish male Social Work student who has a rich life history of experience and an interest in the Autism Spectrum Disorders. He presents as a bloke's bloke and Boy and he should get along just fine.

I was so relieved to get the four hours that I could have just cried. Boy is currently refusing to leave the house and I am getting nothing achieved. The hours will start mid January and we intend to build it into the home school curricula. The day he spends with the Youth Worker will be his home school activities for that day.

In addition to the hours of Youth Work respite offered to us, Boy has also been invited to attend a Summer Camp, offered over 3 days spread across three weeks. The first day will be Taipan players coaching the kids in sport activities and teamwork, second day is circus performers teaching the kids circus tricks and the final day is a day of games and activities on our beautiful esplanade, culminating with a BBQ.

The interviewing worker also provided us information on another respite service that we had not heard of. St John’s Community Care offers Respite through Recreation. The Respite is four hours duration, every second Saturday and attendees are involved in choosing the recreation activities. I’ll be following this one up too!

I am so excited. Boy finally gets to do some fun stuff with other people and I get a break.

How do other parents of children with Aspergers organise breaks for themselves?

(Photo is Boy feeding a Swamp Wallaby.)