The younger Siblings of Autism ........

This is Skylar Richie's little sister <3

I had just found out I was pregnant with this beautiful little angel when Richie began his regression . Humans are resilient , she is proof ... Her life began in the most sad and stressed tummy on the planet ... and the fear even to this day of Sky getting sick to and loosing her can be crippling to say the least .. I missed out on most of her life ... She missed out in having a mom for most of her life ....   Every moment was dedicated to helping Richie , to fighting the school system , constant medical testing , unimaginable family and financial stress ..

 It has always taken 2 people to just keep him safe 24/7  so instead of a two  parent family we were a zero parent family because of the severity of Richie's Autism . A little girl who had to stay alone in her room constantly to keep her safe.... a little girl who lived through chaos and sadness that no human should ever have to endure .. A little girl who could never just sit down and eat without getting her food stolen from her plate ... (she is getting better but to this day I will still find food hidden in her room) ...

Despite it all she has a very special love her her Big brother and he does for her ..... He would run around and do all his crazy stuff when she was a baby and always jumped over her was always so careful of her ... (until he was older lol)

 When Richie went away to Hampstead she was so traumatized and even after her life always being so chaotic , she would cry and say she loves him so much and doesn't care what he does he's her brother ...... She is doing much better now but as she gets older she will understand ... Things were so unsafe here last June , I had to call the crisis team .. They came experienced the situation , and it came down to Sky leaving or Richie because that's how unsafe it had become for us all..... (that was not a good day lol ) To have an outside source look at the situation and be omg this ends today (something that should have happened at least a year prior ) I could only agree ...... I couldn't do it and for those of you who know me I go until the end ... I never give up ... It was more letting go and giving in than giving up .... Through it all is this beautiful little girl who has many of her own behavioral issues and tendencies ....(since her daily smoothie that has changed dramatically ! a blog for another day!)  She missed out on sports , did dance for a while , gymnastics here and there  but pretty much she had to miss out on all the "typical " kid stuff due to not only finances but us not physically being able to leave the house to bring her .... we needed all the human support we could get for Richie .... and that is how we lived for years ............And through it all this beautiful little girl stands strong ! 

I am now just getting to know her and just how magical she really is ! Full of energy ! She loves to write books, draw, design , sing and create anything she can! She loves her friends of which she is now able to have them over which is something we were not able to do in the past .... Not much in her life will probably ever seem hard to her after going through this , children with different abilities are just simply children to her ... She's pure love ...... Making up for lost time has been amazing and I take nothing for granted .... 

Another sibling story coming soon! :)

I am in the process of creating a family support plan document , especially when siblings are involved . It will be a document that can be mailed to friends and family with the things individual Autism families need help with so they can feel and get supported . When these families are in the "midst" it's simply not possible to reach out for help .... I want to make a way that's specific , and simple . We cannot get through this without the help of the "village" that is what it takes . I want to prevent as many of those bad news stories as possible ..... With the numbers at 1 in 38 now we are in BIG trouble . My ultimate goal for this blog is to support the MOM . The MOM is the glue , and if she comes unglued (trust me I've been there) it's not good .... 

I urge you to share this ! By facebook! By email ! whatever it takes ! I want to hear from Autism mom's about what their greatest daily needs are ... so that I can create this document for everyone and even be able to help print and mail them out when necessary ... Please subscribe to our email list by putting your email in the box and then making sure when you get the confirmation email to click on it ! thank you soooooo much ! My email is Maria@MariaAnnMartin.com ! 

All My Love ! 

Maria 

xoxoxoxoxoxxooxxo