Parent wellbeing

Starter's Special

Why did we bring out the Starter's Special? Co-editor Debby Elley says: “When my sons were diagnosed with autism , I was left at the mercy of the internet. The information that I did get was somewhat dull and depressing. Then I met Tori, who has an amazing affinity with autistic children. She felt the same about the lack of positive, impartial, upbeat advice for parents and together we came up with AuKids."

Colleague and co-editor Tori Houghton adds: "We both thought 'Wouldn't it be great if AuKids could be made available to every parent or carer who has only just found out about autism?' It's such an isolating experience to be

told your child has a condition that you don't know much about. AuKids would give them an instant boost, knowing that there was great information out there and that they weren't alone."

"We jokingly call this issue our Greatest Hits," says Debby. "It’s some of the features that have gone down especially well with parents who are new to autism. We compiled the best of them together in this issue. We hope that it'll give parents a helping hand just when they need it”

Enjoy the Starter's Special, then move onto the rest of the library…

Love the team at AuKids x

Issue 43

Ask the Experts: On noise sensitivity: Phoebe Caldwell, Becky Lyddon, Matt Mielnick and Emily Kellett advise.

Our Magical Trip to Disneyland Paris: The Toman family, who have two autistic children under ten, review Disneyland Paris and give top tips for parents planning a trip.

The Inside Angle: Stasia Gibbs-Lewis discusses what overload in public feels like, and what she does to recover.

Doorstep Drama! Top tips for little ones reluctant to leave the house.

Actions Speak Louder than Words Co-editors Debby Elley and Tori Houghton discuss what happens when autistic kids lack the vocal ability to say 'No' - and how we can help.

The Juggling Act: Expert Amiayla Durairaj reports on parents who succeed at balancing life with a special needs child and keeping a career.

Issue 38

Winter 2017/8

Ask the Experts: My daughter bit her Teaching Assistant. What can I do?

What's So Great About Tony Attwood? Who’s he - and why do we like him a lot?

The Inside Angle: Those three little words: Maura Campbell, feature writer for Spectrum Women, discusses the agony of open ended questions.

The Autism Friendly Classroom: Lynn McGann of Reachout ASC, which supports pupils in mainstream schools, gives her ten top tips.

After the Storm: Clinical psychologist Dr Carla Innes talks about the effects of a meltdown on parents, and what to do about it.

Issue 34

Winter 2017

Ask the Experts: My kid has no sense of danger.

Distant Relatives: Family feature to pass on
Our children can seem to family members as if they're from some other planet. But understanding what's behind their behaviour can be the key to getting more from your young relative...our questions and answers will help you through the puzzle of how to reach them.

How to save energy when you're on emergency rations
10 Top Tips from the AuKids editors, for your long-term mental health and well-being.

Blogdashina: What's the big idea? Olga Bogdashina, researcher and author, remembers how one perplexing pupil helped her to think about the differences in autistic learning.

A Life Lesson They'll Never Forget Outreach manager Greg Loynes of the Together Trust talks you through his peer awareness training and the positive effects it creates when it comes to inclusion in mainstream schools. 

Conversation without Words: Dr Barry Prizant's latest book, Uniquely Human, has gone down a storm. Here the US-based speech and language pathologist urges people to look more closely at what non-verbal children are actually trying to communicate in other ways.

Issue 31

Spring 2016

Ask the Experts: My son thinks his willy is the centre of the universe

Cause for Alarm? What to do when anxiety gets out of hand
Step by step guide to tackling fear by Jed Baker, director of the Social Skills Training Project in the USA

Homework: How to win the battle without making enemies
To understand the problem that autistic children have with homework we only need to look at the word itself. It requires a child to take a task that they are used to doing it at school and perform it in an unrelated setting. Combined with that is a deadline. Oh good. What can you do? Here's our advice...

Virtual World Becomes Autism Friendly Thanks to Dad's Minecraft Makeover: Dad Stuart Duncan, himself on the spectrum, noticed that parents of autistic Minecraft players were craving a safe haven for their kids. So he created one - Autcraft was the result.

Oops I did it again...
We all shout at our kids sometimes. But when you're wrong do you ever admit it? How mistakes can become a great learning ground for you and your child.

Blogdashina by Olga Bogdashina
The international speaker and author recalls a very personal journey coming to terms with her son's fragmented perception.

Issue 14

Winter 2012

Tori is immersed in autism in her professional life, and Debby through her personal life. Often we chat over coffee about every day challenges facing parents– and this prevents AuKids from looking like something written in an ivory tower. Time and again we’d talk about the importance of staying calm. No matter how good your intervention strategies are, if you can’t stay calm then it’s all gone to waste. We thought it so important that we focused on it for our first four-page special in our ‘calm’ feature.

Visual support and autism: Why is visual support important? What do we mean by it and how does it work?

How to Keep Your Head…(when all around are losing theirs): Incorporating top tips on keeping calm from a life coach and an airline pilot, plus some pointers from The House of Tiny Tearaways advisor Professor Tanya Byron

Ask the Experts - teeth cleaning and autism: My little boy detests having his teeth cleaned.