Autism Around Alberta Newsletter

In This Issue

• Autism Alberta’s Family Resource Centres
• Autism Alberta’s Summer Support Group Meetings
• Self-Care Milestones and How We Got There – Kitty Parlby
• Defining the Spectrum – Nicole Burnett
• COVID-19 Disability Survey
• Autism Insights – June 2021
• The Power of “Yet” – Karla Power
• Estate Planning Series: Part 4 – Disability Tax Credit – Gergely Hegedus
• Improv Groups for Teens and Adults
• Latest News from the Sinneave Family Foundation
• What is a Sensory Diet? – Maureen Bennie

In Memory of Deborah Barrett

It is with great sorrow that we share the news of Deborah Barrett’s passing on April 20th, 2021.

As President of Autism Society Alberta, I have the task of trying to convey what Deborah meant to our community and to myself. It is a difficult task, and one that I take very seriously. Deborah’s passing leaves a chasm in our community efforts on topics such as Who Will Take Care of Our Kids and employment for those with disabilities. She was a great activist in our community. She was a resource whose departure will impact the effectiveness of our efforts for many years.

It is sad that you often kick yourself after a loss, telling yourself “I wish I told them what they meant to me and our community while they were alive”. I feel I missed the opportunity to truly tell Deb this personally, so I am choosing to do the next best thing I can think of and tell anyone else that will listen. I was first introduced to Deborah about eight years ago, when I was looking to build service offerings for children with disabilities. Within 24 hours of meeting Deborah, she had a dental emergency, and asked me to make a speech and accept a large donation for Autism Society Alberta at a dinner event. In the years that followed, she always provided me with great advice and even greater mentoring, which helped me to eventually realize the importance of the words in that first speech.

In This Issue

• Update on ASA’s Covid Response and Recovery Initiative
• Autism Alberta’s New Sibling Toolkit
• Smoothing the Transition into High School – Kitty Parlby
• Poverty Reduction Table – AISH Educational and Awareness Campaign
• It Has Been A Pleasure! – Brandon Rudics
• Canadian Journal of Autism Equity
• Estate Planning Series: Part 2 – Inter Vivos Discretionary Trusts (Henson Trusts) – Nicole Wiebe
• Spectrum Siblings – Karla Power
• Research Study Looking for Peer Facilitators
• Modeling: Part 3 – Carmen Moore
• Share Your Experiences with Autism
• Caregivers and Increased Demands During the Pandemic – Maureen Bennie
• Webinar: How to Incorporate Structured Strategies into Everyday Life
• Upcoming Caregiver Workshops
• Workshops from the Centre for Autism Services Alberta

In This Issue

• Celebrating World Autism Awareness Day 2021 – Kitty Parlby
• Aging in Autism: Supporting An Autistic Senior
• Kindness and Connection – Karla Power
• Estate Planning Series: Part 1– Estate Planning and Discretionary Trusts – Nicole Wiebe
• Medication – Hope Rudics
• Modeling: Part 2 – Carmen Moore
• The Light at the End of the Tunnel? – Brandon Rudics
• Health Matters: Why Developmental Disabilities Are A Covid-19 Vaccine Priority
• Women+ASD Learning+Support Group
• How to Support Individuals on the Autism Spectrum Through Grief and Loss – Maureen Bennie
• Sensory Issues and Emotions: A Guide to Assisting Children and Adolescents with Self-Awareness and Strategy Development
• Upcoming Workshops from the Centre for Autism Services Alberta

In This Issue

• Autism Alberta’s Statement on FSCD
• Revealing An Autism Diagnosis – Kitty Parlby
• Autism Calgary School Parent Panel
• Life Uncommon – Karla Power
• Introducing Legacy on 5th
• Socially Connecting, Learning, and Meeting While Physically Apart – Ideas for the ASD Community – Maureen Bennie
• Job Seeking During COVID-19 – You Thought It Was Tough Before!
• Modeling – Part 1 – Carmen Moore
• Autism Edmonton’s Artwork Competition
• The Autism Lens – Teaching and Supporting Kids on the Spectrum
• Autism Conference Mini-Series: Re-Thinking What We Know

(more…)

In This Issue

• The Best Christmas Ever! – Karla Power
• Getting Ready to Drive – Kitty Parlby
• Autism CanTech
• The Unexpected Path – Deborah Barrett
• Social Narratives – Part 3 – Carmen Moore
• A Place to Call Home
• Successful Transitions from One Activity to Another for Individuals with ASD – Maureen Bennie
• Upcoming Autism Webinars

(more…)

In This Issue

• Autistic Peer Mentors and ASA Receive Premier’s Council on the Status of Persons with Disabilities Awards
• Barbara Stewart Self-Advocates Fund Campaign Update
• Give The Gift That Keeps On Giving!
• Autism Alberta’s Newest Online Toolkit: A Visual Aid Library
• A Real Life Perspective on Stimming – Kitty Parlby
• The Future of Autism Supports and Services in Alberta: A Wake Up Call
• My Personal Pandemic – Anantha Krishnamurthy
• Study on Body Image and Eating Behaviours
• The Chaos That Won’t Subside – Hope Rudics
• Autism RMWB Presents: The Missing Piece Project
• Light at the End of the Tunnel – Terri Robson
• Changes to Our Holiday Traditions – Brandon Rudics
• Workshop on Transitioning to Adulthood
• My Authentic Self – Bruce Petherick
• Social Narratives – Part 2 – Carmen Moore
• How the Pandemic is Affecting Sleep – Maureen Bennie
• Webinar: Supporting Individuals on the Autism Spectrum with Co-occuring Mental Health Issues
• The Kids Are Okay – Karla Power

In This Issue

• Help Us Reach Our Goal – Donate Today!
• Only One More Week
• I’m His Voice, He Is My Heart – Karla Power
• My Views On Change – Brandon Rudics
• K-12 Learning During COVID-19
• Supports at Post-Secondary Schools in Alberta – Kitty Parlby
• LGBTQ+ Support Group
• Beacon of Hope: A Parent With A Plan
• Social Narratives: Part 1 – Carmen Moore
• Research Opportunity for Canadian Families of Children with ASD
• Autism Calgary Holiday Parties
• Addressing Challenging Behaviour and ASD – Going Beyond What We See – Maureen Bennie
• Helpful Tips and Resources for Teaching Conversation Skills to High Functioning Students with ASD

(more…)

In This Issue

• Virtual Town Halls: The Future of Autism Supports & Services in Alberta
• Barbara Stewart Self-Advocates Fund Matching Campaign
• Supporting Autistic Advocates – Adam Glendon
• When Your Child Becomes an Adult – Kitty Parlby
• What’s Up, Wood Buffalo? – Nicole Spring
• Learning ASD Coping Techniques… From My Son – Brandon Rudics
• An Amazing New Initiative – Coming in December
• Cultivating Self-Esteem in a Stigmatizing World – Cara Hykawy
• This is Real Life – Karla Power
• The Power of Reinforcers – Part 3 – Carmen Moore
• Chatbot Engagement Focus Group
• The Importance of Play for Children with ASD – Maureen Bennie
• Workplace Disability Disclosure Study

In This Issue

• Back to School, At Home or in the Classroom: A Resource for Families
• It’s That Time of Year Again… But Things Are Looking Different – Hope Rudics
• Connecting to Your Closer Community – Kitty Parlby
• Autistic Support Group
• Never Give Up Hope – Karla Power
• Being An Adult with ASD in the LGBTQ2+ Community – Brandon Rudics
• Centre for Autism Services 50/50 Raffle
• Autistic Peer Mentor Hosts Free Virtual Group Tai Chi Classes – Aksana Kirton
• Back to School During COVID – Terri Duncan
• The Power of Reinforcers – Part 2 – Carmen Moore
• Constipation, Witholding and Overflow – A Deeper Dive into Bowel Problems for Individuals with ASD – Maureen Bennie

(more…)

In This Issue

• ASA’s Response to July 21st Announcement from the Minister of Education
• Please Ask Me About My Son – Karla Power
• Connecting in Lethbridge – Brandon Rudics
• Autistic Self-Expression
• Autism Society Alberta’s Annual General Meeting
• Autism Society Alberta Support Group
• Everyday Learning – Teaching in Context – Kitty Parlby
• Strategies for Better Sleep in Individuals with ASD – Ade Orimalade and Funto Orimalade
• Life Beyond Trauma
• Parenting a Child on the Spectrum, While on the Spectrum – Brandon Rudics
• The Big Announcement – Hope Rudics
• Increased Screen Time in the Age of COVID-19 – Maureen Bennie
• You Can’t Ask That: Autism
• Self-Management 101 – Carmen Moore
• Autism Edmonton is Adding New Board Members
• Occasio – Summer Edition

Let It Go

Karla Power

 
As I write this, I am filled with a sense of pride in my boys and peace in my heart. If you had asked me a month or two ago, I would not have described my heart as being peaceful. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

Just like many people during this difficult time, I was struggling. I was struggling with trying to balance two worlds: that of work and home, all while trying to adjust my family and myself to a brand-new routine. It was definitely stressful!

On top of the regular everyday stress with work and managing a household, my husband and I were both stressing about how to meet our children’s goals. Paddy has goals for speech and communication, dressing goals, and life skills goals, to name a few. We had also just recently been informed that Kelton was not reaching his milestones. So here I am, sitting with lots of time on my hands, thinking it’s a great time to work on all these goals!

WRONG! After several attempts to work on many of these goals, I ended up feeling exhausted and defeated! I started to wonder if perhaps trying to potty train during a pandemic was not the best plan! Yes, we had lots of time, but it was not undivided, and both of our boys were out of their regular routine. So, to expect them to try new things in such a scary and confusing time was a bit much!

The Art of Backing Off

Kitty Parlby

We’ve all heard the phrase ‘quality of life’ quite a bit. Our family works hard to fill our son Eric’s life with a combination of productivity, recreation and relaxation. Although this can be a struggle at times, I have gotten better at it over the last 20 years. It is especially important to give Eric a chance to hone his abilities and learn new skills. However, there is a vital aspect of exploring skills and creativity that I’d like to address.

Have you ever come up with some great task or project for your autistic family member, student or client? Maybe it was a practical skill, or maybe it was creative. Perhaps it was just an everyday chore that you felt they were ready to try, or something they showed an interest in. However, as things got started you found that they were not going as you expected. Maybe it was going very slowly, or it was getting messy, or loud, or went in an entirely unexpected direction. Then, without even being conscious of doing it, you stepped in.

And there it is. Most of us, being human, look at completing tasks through our own experience. That means doing a task our way using the skill and experience we have. I’m no different. Yet we all gained those skills or our creative style through trial, practice and error. Those with autism need that same chance. So it was with great struggle and mindfulness that I had to learn a new skill myself: the art of backing off. It’s a fine balance to be had, and your balance may look different from my balance.