What I Wish I'd Known About Raising a Child with Autism

Bobbi Sheahan is a mom who teamed up with her child's psychologist to write What I Wish I'd Known About Raising a Child With Autism: A Mom and a Psychologist Offer Heartfelt Advice for the First Five Years. She wrote this book to spare other parents some of the pain, discouragement, and confusion that can accompany the early years of parenting a child who has or may have autism. This is her third book. Kathy DeOrnellas, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist who worked closely with the Sheahan family for many years. In addition to having a private counseling practice, she is also a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology, a National Health Service Provider, and a Professional Art Therapist.

I would recommend this book without reservation. It serves as a good book for those who are considering that their child may be autistic, or have children newly diagnosed as autistic. This book would be a good beginner book for parents who want to know about autism, and a great source for further reading on the subject."—Stephen M. Donahue, M.D.

• PrefaceChapter 1: Our Journey from Cluelessness to Partial EnlightenmentChapter 2: Autism 101Chapter 3: In the BeginningChapter 4: The Causes of AutismChapter 5: The Basics ... with a Twist of AutismChapter 6: My Kid, She’s Not Much of a TalkerChapter 7: My, What a High Pain Tolerance You Have ... and What Sensitive EarsChapter 8: What Can I Do about These Weird Behaviors?Chapter 9: Reading, Writing, and Lining Up Her ToysChapter 10: If I’ve Told You Once, I’ve Told You a Million Times!Chapter 11: My Child and Other PeopleChapter 12: Talk about ItChapter 13: There Is No Finish LineAfterwordBobbi’s Annotated BibliographyAbout the Authors