So, I had this light bulb moment recently about how I might bring together a life-long special interest in art & design with my new special interest in autism ~ autism friendly design.
And it turns out The National Autistic Society are running a one day conference on 1st November 2016 in Manchester on
Autism Friendly Design.
And it turns out The National Autistic Society are running a one day conference on 1st November 2016 in Manchester on
Autism Friendly Design.
Since autism became part of our life I've had many opportunities to observe, & experience first hand, how ill-suited many environments can be for autistic people & the very real difficulties caused by autism unfriendly environments. Schools, shops, leisure centres, transport hubs, homes even, the list goes on.
Having literally given up the day job in 2013 to focus on the unexpected demands of family life with autism, my plan was always to return to the workplace once 'things had settled' & we'd found our 'new normal'.
After a couple of false starts, we've still not reached a 'new normal'. But that hasn't stopped me pondering the retraining opportunities a forced career break might open up. Could this be my chance to pursue the creative education I'd not had the confidence to pursue way back when or should I find a way to formally build on the knowledge I'm acquiring now about autism with a view to helping others - after all, demand is clearly outstripping supply in terms of diagnosis & therapeutic support whether relating to autism, sensory processing or the mental health issues that can ensue.
After a couple of false starts, we've still not reached a 'new normal'. But that hasn't stopped me pondering the retraining opportunities a forced career break might open up. Could this be my chance to pursue the creative education I'd not had the confidence to pursue way back when or should I find a way to formally build on the knowledge I'm acquiring now about autism with a view to helping others - after all, demand is clearly outstripping supply in terms of diagnosis & therapeutic support whether relating to autism, sensory processing or the mental health issues that can ensue.
Then it dawned on me that there might be a way of combining the two ~ & clearly I'm not alone!
Could I, should I, am I too old, will I be taken seriously, or do I come at it from another angle, from within the autistic community?
That internal debate continues to rage so watch this space.
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| Pastel Stained Glass via LOVETHISPIC |
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