One Place | Less Overwhelm | More Clarity
You’re doing the work – searching, learning, advocating – because the system doesn’t just hand you answers. Get the answers you need now.
Autism Unfiltered was born out of a deep desire to make sure that the rhetoric doesn’t drown out those who are advocating every day to make sure our children have full and autonomous lives and are treated with dignity and respect.
In 1989 – the year I was in second grade – the federal government set the asset limit for people receiving SSI at $2,000.
It has not changed since.
That means that saving for your disabled child is more complicated than it would be for a child who won’t need SSI or Medicaid benefits in the future…
Future planning for a disabled child is often treated like a “tomorrow problem.” But when families start navigating waivers, benefits, and transition planning, they quickly discover how many disconnected systems they’re expected to understand.
Access to information, resources, and support for families raising neurodivergent children depends on word of mouth, luck, and who happens to be in the room.
If your neurodivergent child is being removed from peers in the name of “support,” this is how to evaluate the IEP and decide whether it’s time to call a meeting.
From IEPs to medical referrals, decision fatigue is constant. How parents of neurodivergent kids can prioritize without burnout.
The IEP team saw progress, and pulled back dedicated 1:1 support.
Honestly – it felt like a moment to celebrate.
Until it wasn’t…
Because he didn’t have someone dedicated to supporting him…
When he pulled the fire alarm to get out of an assembly he didn’t want to go to.
Planning for next week feels impossible.
Planning for adulthood? Out of reach.
If that sounds like you… lean in for a second.
You’re doing great.
You’re not failing your child.
You’re not behind – you’re overloaded.
Parenting is hard. Parenting a neurodivergent child in a changing, underfunded, politically volatile system is harder.
Every year, as the holiday season kicks off, I find myself grieving the loss of family and friends – not because they’ve passed away – but because our relationship did.
It’s a particular kind of grief – the kind that doesn’t come with casseroles and sympathy cards.
It’s the ache of relationships changed, not by death, but by the boundaries we had to draw to protect our child.
And it’s especially loud this time of year.
You can love your child fiercely
and still feel overwhelmed by the reality of the holiday season with a neurodivergent kid.
Let’s just call that what it is:
Being a mom, who makes all the plans, buys all the gifts, and creates all the magic.