Hello, new to the group here. My autistic daughter is 23 and graduated in a typical high school program when she was 19. She had tons of support and made it through but really does not qualify for typical college and really isn't seeking that. She tried a few classes at a community college but was discouraged because they were hard and she didn't enjoy it at all. Her anxiety and fight/flight mode is on all the time. She was not treated nicely by boys when she was young and is scared of boys/men with few exceptions. She is hyper sensitive to sound and can panic when she hears wings of a flying insect. This make walks even with headphones impossible. We've tried. Our neighborhood is full of dogs being walked.. another pit fall as she was "nipped" by a "nice" dog when she was five. The puppy was just being playful but it ruined the possibility of her liking/being comfortable around any unknown animal. She is content to be in her mind space where she feels safe. We moved right before covid and that made things ever more challenging because everything familiar changed and we had to move due to a job change. So we have been struggling to find our way. Covid drove her further into the computer and her Playmobil or American Girl world. I have found an adaptive wellness program with an indoor therapy pool and she is willing to do that twice a week and an art class that is on zoom and that is it. We have no family anywhere near here and tried joining in with some groups but she had no interest in continuing and so I stopped pushing. We have been using a job coach for a few months and may eventually lead to something but that's not great either because they seem clueless most of the time about autistic people. Thanks for reading my novel... I want so much to help guide her to a fulfilling future but my well feels like it has run dry.

Posted by kmossinghoff at 2023-04-14 17:08:34 UTC