Thursday, December 29, 2011

Beware of MASK syndrome

Have you noticed any of these symptoms recently:

• Irritability?
• Hyper-vigilance?
• Repetitive speech?
• Avoidance of social interaction?
• Disregard for personal appearance and social niceties?

I’m not talking about your child with Asperger’s or autism. I’m talking about you. And me. And a common occurrence I’m calling MASK (Mothers of Autism Spectrum Kids) Syndrome. It occurs when a mom spends so much of her waking life focusing on her child’s special needs and fighting for his interests that, somewhere along the way, she starts to lose touch with the person she used to be. How ironic it is that, in fighting autism, many of us start to become a little more autistic ourselves.



Read more of Lisa Barrett Mann, M.S.Ed.'s Autism Support Network article HERE.

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