If a child was diagnosed with autism, His parents had been amazed in the depths of despair that threatened to overpower them. Though they had their son, They felt like they had dropped him somehow. A load of mourning and moving to some new standard wasn’t a burden they managed to continue their own.
Luckily, their loved ones members and friends linked arms, walking on the street of distress. Unfortunately, a lot of parents of kids with disabilities walk the street alone. If you are a friend or relative who’s confronting a youngster’s difficult investigation, you get a special and real chance to assist them.
What You Can Do:
1. Listen
You may feel an uneasiness about reaching out because you don’t know what to say. It’s important to remember that there are no perfect words that are going to make things better for the parent. It is through asking questions and listening that you can best help them. Asking open-ended questions such as, “How are you handling the diagnosis?” or “What are the challenges you are facing?” are good starting points.
2. Don’t Offer Advice
Parents of children with autism often receive unsolicited advice concerning their child’s behavior, the causes of autism, and options for therapy. Because of this, there is a wariness to talk about it.
As you begin an empathetic dialogue with your loved one, withhold your opinions and judgments unless you are asked for them. The parent is most likely weary and needs as much encouragement and grace as she can get. Offering advice will only cut off your opportunity to help her.
3. Offer Tangible Help
The physical, emotional, and spiritual toll that comes with an autism diagnosis can be overwhelming, especially when the parent has other children to care for. Offer specific ways that you’d like to help ease the burden.
Take the family a meal. Plan a Girls-Night-Out and provide babysitting. Offer to keep her kids overnight so the parents can have time together. Go to her house once a week at a set time to play with the child while she runs errands.
4. Provide Spiritual Encouragement
The best way to bless your loved one is to consistently pray for her. I still reread the emails and cards that people sent telling me the specific things they were praying for my son and for me. They offered me scripture that reminded me of God’s faithfulness and provision. They spoke of their love for my son. And they encouraged me to continue to be faithful despite my circumstances.
When parents are grieving an autism diagnosis, you cannot take away their pain completely, but your intentional care will help them grieve with hope. It will also open up opportunities to share the ultimate comfort—Jesus Christ—with those who are at a point of crisis and desperation for hope.
