Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person: A Parent’s Handbook to Supporting Newly Diagnosed Teens and Pre-Teens

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This marvelous book is like a trusted friend who can relieve your worries and confusion while explaining the most promising approaches to raising a happy, healthy, and creative autistic young person. It condenses a tremendous amount of useful information into an engaging and friendly read. I'll be buying multiple copies to give away. Cathy's lived experience shines through - from the conversational tone and reassurance offered to the reader; the book is an easy to use, warm and wide-ranging guide to parenting an autistic teenager. I can see that this book will help countless families, and will be relevant for years to come. PDF / EPUB File Name: Nurturing_Your_Autistic_Young_Person_-_Cathy_Wassell.pdf, Nurturing_Your_Autistic_Young_Person_-_Cathy_Wassell.epub John Facchnini of Employment Futures explains how he helps organisations get the best out of autistic employees. The Council for Disabled Children’s new Director on their work to implement the Government’s SEND Change Programme - October 18, 2023

Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person (Book Review) Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person (Book Review)

Parents and teachers of autistic children, you need Cathy's book on your bookshelf! I'm genuinely excited about the positive change this book may bring in ensuring parents and professionals understand autistic young people better. Acceptance Matters is a virtual conference hosted by the North East Autism Society. Featuring a panel of autistic speakers, the conference will cover topics including double empathy, school-based anxiety and nurturing autistic young people. Claire Sainsbury states ‘any child who is old enough to understand a simple explanation…. is old enough’ (Sainsbury, 2010). Likewise, research has found that when children know nothing about their diagnosis, they can have a very negative perception of themselves (Miller, 2015 and Punshon et al 2009). Who is best placed to have these conversations? It is never too late to support a young person in developing a better sense of self. I have worked for a number of years doing just this, through clearly structured sessions, together creating a personalised book all about them. The Autism, Identity and Me Workbook for young people was created to become the individual’s unique story, using visual prompts to positively explore their personality and interests, feelings of difference and what this means to them. The book also features other autistic individuals, providing peer representation, and a template toolkit. When to have these conversations?

No stone has been left unturned in this wonderfully accessible, comprehensive cornucopia guide for parents and carers. The inclusion of 'real people' voices in the case studies throughout is particularly powerful and combined with the almost limitless information, advice and resources, this book is a must have for anyone wishing to support their late diagnosed teen or young adult. So often, autistic young people are told to stop stimming, taught neurotypical ‘social skills’ and disciplined because of characteristics directly related to their autistic identity. We need to be actively promoting autistic pride and creating communities where autistic young people can understand their strengths and have their needs catered for. What is autistic identity? Consider the environment: would they prefer to be somewhere familiar? Think about the sensory input such as lighting and sounds. It turns out that this late diagnosis is more and more common, particularly in those that present in an internal way, who tend to mostly be girls. It turns out our child is NOT fine in school. In fact, they are so anxious, school is traumatising them more and more to the point they may actually become unable to attend. It also turns out that we’re parenting just fine thank you very much, and that since at least one of us is likely to be neurodivergent we’re probably parenting in a much more appropriate way for our neurodivergent child than all those neurotypically-framed parenting courses they tried to send us on.

Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person - Booktopia Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person - Booktopia

I wish I had read this incredible book many years ago. My daughter - aged 13 - had a late diagnosis and this (hand)book is exactly what I need to be able to understand and support her better. I'd gleened bits and pieces of information about autism over the past few years, and especially the last few months - but it's all here (and so much more) in one book, written in a clear and understandable way. So many 'aha' moments. Cathy Wassell's book seems to have everything covered from co-occurring conditions to sensory stuff, with lots of practical advice on how to nurture and advocate for our autistic young people.” Book review There is also strength and solace in a shared identity. Much of what has been shown to increase wellbeing and reduce anxiety is finding your place in a community of like-minded people, such as with other autistic or neurodivergent folk. If you are a professional leading these conversations (in advance of the session), you should start planning and information gathering alongside parents. The resources section of the Guidebook has tools which can be used in an informal meeting with parents/carers and key adults. Signs to spot in your own child can include different behaviours in and outside school, and exhaustion. Find out more in this video. When I began to feel that, everything changed for me. I began to see that I had a future. I was given the opportunity to learn about myself, understand my brain, and start to make adaptations to my life which made it easier to navigate. I needed a healthy way to direct my anger at my experiences into something useful. So, I joined my local CAMHS young people’s council, to be able to have influence in shaping services. I then stood for election as a public governor for my NHS mental health and learning disability trust. I am now in my fourth year as governor. I started university to study mental health nursing, and I qualify later this year. I became a trustee for the Autistic Girls Network, of course. I started to write blogs, give talks, and work alongside organisations to create change.

There’s a lot to take in, and that’s why the book is written in the form of a handbook you can dip in and out of, and revisit when that section becomes more relevant to your situation. Reviewers talk about lots of aha moments: This fascinating book provides an up-to-date and comprehensive overview of autism for parents wishing to learn about autism and how to support their autistic young person. While not shying away from the challenges that an autistic young person may encounter, Cathy adopts a strengths-based approach that focuses on embracing neurodiversity and nurturing the young person to develop their true identity. The book is very readable, and the resources provided at the end allow parents to explore areas further if they wish. The award-winning sports podcast created by autistic learners that’s giving them hope and skills for the future - October 25, 2023 So what’s the book all about? It’s the book I’d like to have read when my daughter got her autism diagnosis, seemingly out of the blue. It’s also the one I’d like to have read when my son was diagnosed at 18, presenting completely differently to his sister. That is to say, it’s very clear that every autistic person is different, just as we are all different.

Autistic young people | North East Autism Society Autistic young people | North East Autism Society

Autism is a spectrum condition and affects people in different ways. Like all people, autistic people have their own strengths and weaknesses. Social interaction and communication can be difficult for some autistic people but others may enjoy it. Intense interests and repetitive behaviour are often seen along with differing sensory experiences'. Georgina Durrant, author of ‘100 Ways Your Child Can Learn Through Play’ and Founder of The SEN Resources Blog. Everything in this book resonates on so many levels. A must whether you're a parent, teacher or someone who, like me, reads it and is still astounded by how much feeling different shouldn't have to be so difficult. Affirming, passionate and timely if we are to explode the medicalised myths around autism. I’m in lots of Facebook groups full of parents who feel unsupported by the professionals they thought would help them, because the system doesn’t allow them to help most of the time. I can’t fix the system, although I’ll give it a good try. But I can help everyone who reads the book to understand their autistic young person a little better, and to create an environment where they will thrive. Open your minds and come on this journey with me. You won’t regret it.

Rebecca Duffus is an Advisory Teacher working with students and educators in mainstream and specialist schools, plus local council and education services. Here, Rebecca discusses the importance of supporting young people to understand their autistic identity. Cathy Wassell is a neurodivergent mum to neurodivergent young people in a happilyneurodivergent family. She is CEO of Autistic Girls Network charity, which supports and campaigns for autistic girls and their families and author of Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person. She is passionate about educating others about neurodiversity to lessen the current stigma of being autistic, so that young people can grow up with a positive autistic identity Your role as a parent, regardless of your own neurotype, is to champion them until they are ready to champion themselves, to learn as much as you can and spread that knowledge to close family and friends so that your child becomes surrounded by people who understand neurodiversity, who know what reasonable adjustments they are entitled to, and who can provide them with the environment they need to thrive, both emotionally and in a sensory way. In particular, they need people who understand the importance of passionate interests for autistic people and are willing to join them in that interest, or at least dip their toes in, even if they don’t feel they can dive in headfirst. Being able to talk about and practice passionate interests is a form of autistic joy and likely to play a large part in your young person’s emotional regulation.

young people to understand their autistic identity Helping young people to understand their autistic identity

The experience of getting recognised as autistic is different for everyone, but it is affected by your age, your environment, your mental health and your supporters. Someone who is diagnosed at two is going to have a different life experience to someone who is diagnosed at 17 amid a massive mental health crisis. And they are going to be different again to someone who is diagnosed/recognised at 50, or even at 83 as happened in our Facebook group a few months ago! This book will help any parent and their autistic daughter understand autism and prepare for an assessment. The book is full of practical information about autism which allows you to explore together your daughter's own profile on the spectrum. The book is easy to read and would enable you to gather all the evidence you could require towards the diagnosis assessment. What I love about this book, is that it also gives you ways you can support your autistic daughter, now, before the official diagnosis. It is common for people to worry about doing the 'wrong' thing and as you understand your daughter, you will find the 'Living well with autism' section really helpful and positive. Because our autistic girls should feel positive about who they are and the future that is ahead of them. Autistic Girls Network is part of the change we need to see. Cathy’s book is also part of that change. If every parent and every professional could read this book, autism understanding would come a long way. And this is so important, because at the heart of this are young autistic people all over the world who are continually being failed by the people who are meant to protect them. And that has to change.” We recognise that the work we do wouldn’t be possible without our incredible team of dedicated employees. With opportunities within our care, education, employment and family support services, there’s a career for you at the North East Autism Society.An exceptional and brilliantly written book to help navigate the conflicting advice given and keep your autistic young person safe and happy. When a young person gets a diagnosis, the parents may be offered parent programmes, and the school may be offered training, but what does the actual autistic person get? In many cases, young people are not given the opportunity to explore their autistic identity. In an ideal world, a young person would be aware of autism at the start of their autism assessment process and then be able to build their understanding on this topic gradually and over time, with the support of understanding adults. An autism diagnosis is much more than just a ‘label’. If you’re autistic, you’ve been autistic your whole life and you will gradually become aware that you experience the world in a different way to many of your peers.