ASD Friendly
From A-buzz Forum
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ASD Friendly | |
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| Name of Organisation: | ASD Friendly |
| Headline: | Sharing Experiences about Everyday life with our ASD Children |
| What We Do: | ASD Friendly is a close-knit community of parents and carers of people with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome. Established in April 2003, ASD Friendly brings us together to share tips, vent frustrations and generally have a laugh about things that other people would never understand. We know that caring for a disabled child is difficult and rewarding; it's good to know that we don't need to do it all alone. |
| Area: | National
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| Address: | via website contact us form |
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| Email: | http://www.asdfriendly.org/contact_us via form on website only |
| Website: | http://www.asdfriendly.org |
| Services Offered: | A community of parents and carers of people with Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.
In 2002, the story of Helen Rogan hit the headlines. She jumped from a viaduct in County Durham with her autistic son, Mark, killing them both. A news story that had particular poignance for us. Not only did we live locally, but our then two-year-old son was in the early stages of being diagnosed with Autism. No one seemed to want to know. The joke became, "Congratulations, your son has Autism. Don't let the door hit you on the way out." There was no guide book, no support - just a health visitor who could help us fill in the form for free nappies. As if that would make the world better! 'Friends' vanished quickly and we became more and more isolated. We'd muddled through the health maze, but faced with a tribunal just to get the LEA to assess our non-verbal son for a statement, we realised that we needed help. Help, which just wasn't there. So, we bought a domain name, installed some software and started talking about what Autism was like for us and our family. Other parents came along too, and there was a wonderful bonding that no one had really expected. Suddenly there were people who understood just what it was like to have a naked child in the middle of the wine aisle in Tesco. They knew some tips and tricks that we didn't and vice-versa. Slowly life started improving for all of us. It's nice to know there's somewhere to go where you can voice your worst moments and have a reassuring voice coming back: "Don't panic. That's happened here too." Hit a problem and there's someone there with advice, suggestions, or a recommendation of someone to help. Together, we're stronger and never alone. The real friendships that have flourished on this site speak for themselves. When we started out, we never imagined what the site would become. We've met some of the most wonderful people here, and ASDfriendly is a real community where people genuinely care and help each other out |
| Disability Type: | Asperger's Syndrome, Autism |
| Pat Mark Status: | Not Yet Applied For
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