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What Makes Autism so Uniquely Stressful?

By Michelle DePolo, Psy.D., Pediatric Psychologist, KidsLink Neurobehavioral Center

It has been well established that parents of children with autism experience greater stress than parents of children with other developmental disabilities. Whether it is trying to determine what your child is attempting to communicate, managing self-injurious behaviors, or creating a daily structure and routine that minimally changes, numerous factors converge to make many moments throughout the day a daily struggle for parents of kids with special needs. As a clinical psychologist, I hear first-hand of these struggles on a daily basis. Consider the following (all identifying information changed to protect confidentiality):

These represent just some of the concerns shared with me during a single day of clinical practice.


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