A few months ago, I took my sons to buy shoes. Siew
Ming is fourteen ___1___
autistic. Siew Nam is eight and normal. Before we
got to the store, Siew Nam said, "Mum, you just ___2___
on buying shoes. If Siew Ming throws a tantrum, I
___3___ handle
him." I nodded and gave him a pat on the head. One
aspect of autism that rarely gets talked about is
the brothers and sisters of autistic children. They
are often embarrassed about their autistic sibling
and they feel guilty ___4___
having these feelings. One way of helping them cope
with this is to educate them early on, by ___5___
their sibling's disorder. Another is to include
non-autistic children in ___6___
to the doctor or other autism professionals. ___7___
, kids can be brought to meet other siblings of
autistic children, which they can do at sibling
workshops. These workshops give the siblings of the
autistic to share experiences and learn that they
are not alone. |