Parenting a Disabled Child

By

cett

My son is 17yrs old and has aspergers syndrome. PLEASE! DO NOT call your grandson disabled. He is probably more intelligent AND ABLE than "normal" people - just has a different perspective of life. Surely, if you explain to the interviewer BEFORE he goes for a job, that he has aspergers which in NO WAY will affect his work performance, then I'm sure ( if they are reasonable people), they will make allowances for him. You MUST explain clearly what the pros and cons are. I've found that if you emphasis the GOOD points of aspergers(of which there are many which are useful to certain jobs) then he has a chance! remember, he is not disabled!

By Carol in PA (Guest Post)

I think I'd try to find a position for him with the government. I know the federal government has to have a certain number of disabled employees on staff. Where I live there is a federal munitions factory as well as a fort where they make electronic components for the federal government. Most of the employees at both places are civilians.

My 3nd choice would be a state or county government position in his field.

Best of luck! I know there is a position for him. You just have to find it. Please dont be discouraged.

By

T&T Grandma

PACER is a program that is used for challenged people in many aspects.
Also your grandson must have had an ISP or IEP done somewhere along the line. Take this to a local tech college and there are stream lined areas for specialists in staff to deal with specialists in students. Been there, done that.

By Loretta (Guest Post)

Hi, Check out some of the yahoo groups about autism. Some of the parents there can probably help you, or direct you to someone that can help you.

By rae (Guest Post)

My brother has Aspergers. He is going to be 50 years old.He works at Longs and drives a car. A few years age got testing and counselling from a County organization in Paso Robles/Atascadero,CA. They will find job coaching and even find employers that get money from the government to hire them. On top of that, he is now getting disability from Social Security. The secret there is to be diagnosed as autistic, not Aspergers. If you want more info. I can give it to you. it would have been much easier starting at a young age with him, but it wasn't until my daughter became a special ed teacher that we knew where to start.

By

Jilson

If there is a community college in your area, call the counseling office and explain that your grandson (her son) needs to learn interview skills, etc. because he has Aspergers.

If they don't have a program, they can let you know who does. You can also call the public school system, and speak with the guidance office for recommendations.

Your grandson needs to practice, and prepare for all possible questions. He may want to consider being up front with his condition or not.

There are many books on interviewing; but he may also need support once he has a job, to learn to get along with other staff appropriately.

The following sites may have some useful info. for you:

http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer?pagename=life_aspergers

http://www.aspergerssyndrome.org/

Best of luck!