Harbl the cat... only a very different man... TLDR

[R&R Rancher]

FWIW Harbl my son is a high functioning Autistic. He just turned 18 last month. For him the key was early diagnosis and enrolment in what was called the ABA program through the ST. Amant center. These are Manitoba based programs but Alberta will have similar. They provided an in house tutor 7.5 hours a day 5 days a week until he went to school. We were then able to get him into the school age ABA program. The school hired an EA and let the ABA teach her how to work with him.

I remember when the program first started. He was tantruming over a dozen times a day. His speech was delayed and his frustration level over being unable to communicate beyond grunts and gestures was high. This was the root cause of the tantrums. As his language skills and coping skills increased his tantruming disappeared. That was a huge burden lifted off our shoulders. Just one of the first of many small victories.

BSD gave you great advice. Get out there and advocate for your children. Everything I’ve seen and read says that if you delay the critical help your child needs then you will miss the window where the help can do the most good. When my son was diagnosed he was two. Doctors told us there was nothing that could be done. We have a weekly play session for kids like him and a monthly get together for parents. They also said, oh by the way I hope you have a good support network because you are going to need it. Had we followed that advice we would have destroyed any potential future our son had. We had been told about the ABA by another family we knew that had an autistic child.

My son has a good chance of leading what most would call a normal life. It may take him a bit longer to acquire life skills than his peers, but he will get there. He still faces challenges, but don’t we all?

[firemachine69]

So, uhm, when we gonna start talking about gold bullion again?

[shortandlong]

Welcome back “h” I have never seen a my little poney without thinking of some of your crazy posts lols

My 2 year old daughter is a fan when she isn’t being a precious terror .

All that and transitioning out of the mob eh ?

Ya been through a lot nice to hear from you

[NickYYC]

Delete

[JustBen]

I can always use GOC to sell all that .223 Nork Surplus Ammo I bought 5-6 years ago at a 30% return...

Boxer primed?

[NickYYC]

Delete

[shortandlong]

Hey man , they're just things people and family are forever where I stand is that it’s on us to preserve things to pass on to the next generation

[awndray]

If you're not bankrupt, you're not broke. I know, because I've been there. But if you feel you're broke and are desperately trying to free up some cash, selling off surplus guns and ammo is a good start. Are you still hoarding precious metals and crypto? Do you still have real estate to your name? Are you not well versed in investing?

Instead of self-medicating and self-diagnosing, have you considered seeking help from a professional? If you're doing so for your child, why not for yourself?

[pewpew62]

Harbl, having a dependent adult son (early onset schizophrenia, he is also a brony, has the tat's to prove it), we understand the fear of what will happen to them after we pass. There is a lawyer in Calgary, Gordon and Anne Vanderleek who are very familiar with estate planning for parents of children with disabilities. One word, RDSP. My mother has been very generous and my wife has been great at saving all the cash gifts #1 son has received since birth (he's 34 now). It's starting to grow into a rather substantial stash. My niece has agreed to be his trustee once we're no longer able. So there are steps you can take to give yourselves some peace of mind.

It crushes me to put myself in his shoes, it is a life of extreme isolation and loneliness. He's a strapping 6'2 blonde blue-eyed hunk that the hunnies go wild over,...until they talk to him and can't make sense of what he's saying. I think that would be worse than being simply ignored. Sure, I escape into drink at times, but my skills at dealing with our situation continue to improve. So it does get better friend, my aha moment came when I decided to accept the hand we were dealt. I mean,..truly accept and embrace. I was horrible in the beginning, so fearful and ignorant of what was happening, I would stay out late drinking and fill every moment doing something other than supporting my spouse. I was scared. It sounds like you are coming to terms and developing some coping skills. Take care and like BSD says, don't be afraid of being the squeaky wheel. Learn the lingo of the healthcare professionals so you can better communicate with them. It does get better, just hang in there pal.

[DanN]

Delete

***POOF***

I wonder what happened...

[awndray]

Looks like people are replying to a ghost.

[shortandlong]

Sad , hope he comes back

[NickYYC]

Sorry everyone, I had to delete my previous posts, namely because I was skirting around an extremely hard truth and most of what I said wasn't accurate (that and my wife told me to delete them).

After a huge THC vape session, meditating, and praying, God revealed to me that truth.

I have to make the hardest decision of my life in the coming weeks and I have to prepare for it.

I may not be a specialist in the fields of child psychology and neurology, but I am confident I am one of the best Software Engineers in Calgary, and as such, I am able to understand and troubleshoot extraordinarily complex systems outside of the domain of Software Engineering.

In my training as an engineer, I never learnt how mobile GIS platforms worked, nor military C4ISR systems, nor electrical grid power pool billing, hotel booking systems, construction management and fixture scoping management, or contracts for financial and physical commodities trading... oh and blockchain technology. I'm fully confident in saying I can demonstrate expertise in all of these fields close to or exceding an expert level.

Each of those fields, some seemingly benign or mundane, are of a comparable complexity to the somatic, pneumatic and psychological systems of each human being - of which I have spent the past 10 months obsessing over with greater vigor than I have any of those other areas in an effort to find the answer to curing my daughter.

I'm taking a stress leave from work. Before I left, I told my boss, "You know I have a 'monster truck' of a mind." He agreed.

Most men can't find what that answer is. I can. I have. It took me 10 months or redlining to do it.

The hardest decision is figuring out how I will sacrifice everything I have worked for these past 20 years to manifest it.

I am absolutely prepared to give it all up to heal my family.

"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" - Mark 8:36

The soul is the mind...

[Doug_M]

The hardest decision is figuring out how I will sacrifice everything I have worked for these past 20 years to manifest it.

I am absolutely prepared to give it all up to heal my family.

That's not hard brother, once you realize "everything" is your family and not what you're about to sacrifice. Good luck, good journey, and best wishes to your family.

[R&R Rancher]

The biggest thing you need to sacrifice is your time. It all boils down to that.