Reddit reviews My Autism Book: A Child's Guide to their Autism Spectrum Diagnosis

https://www.amazon.co.uk/My-Autism-Book-Spectrum-Diagnosis/dp/184905438X

My major advice would be to keep in mind that autism is not a linear condition, especially as a person goes through childhood. In my personal experience, it always seemed like just when I was getting the hang of things, everything would drastically change. I struggled a lot socially in early elementary school, but by the end I had made a solid group of friends. Then middle school came and suddenly everything changed, and recess was gone and replaced with lunch. My friends started to act differently, and suddenly everything was about socializing instead of playing a game or something. I lost my social group, and didn't really figure anything out until senior year in high school. I eventually stopped trying by Sophomore year, and my parents just assumed it was a choice because I had gotten 'past' my problems in Elementary school. Which really wasn't the case. Even at 26, on a smaller scale, I struggle with changes in social environment and it can take me months to begin truly making friends.

So don't assume that she's just plain 'got better,' keep a realistic eye on her progress and possible challenges as major changes occur throughout her adolescence.

I think it's awesome that you want her to learn to be ok with her autism, I never was really taught that and my parents never tried to properly explain what being autistic meant. They knew I was probably somewhere on the spectrum, and had numerous assessments done across the first couple years of my education. By the end, the school psych had confirmed that I did appear to be autistic but needed to do a bit more observation sessions to rule out other possibilities and figure out where on the spectrum I fit at the time(PDDNOS was likely). Eventually I was told that they thought I was autistic, and whenever the idea of finishing the process came up I apparently would literally run away screaming "I'M NOT CRAZY" because I thought that's what autism meant. No one took the time to sit me down and tell me about it, my parents just sort of caved to my tantrums(meltdowns? I dunno, can't remember honestly) and shoved it aside after that.

So it is AWESOME that helping her accept it is one of your stated goals. I dunno when you're planning on explaining to her what autism is, but you might want to consider this book as a way to help her figure it out when the time comes later down the road. I came across it a few weeks ago, and almost cried because I wish something that direct, clear, and positive had been around when I was 9 and terrified of the idea.

I would start explaining it to him now. It doesn't need to be a huge in-depth discussion around how autism could affect him, or anything too much about neurology or anything like that. Explaining over time starting now will be much easier for him than having to process it in one big chunk, or having to struggle through his adolescence not knowing why he is so different to many of his peers. There are a few books on the topic of explaining autism to your child which can help if you're struggling with the wording:

• Can I Tell you about Autism - Jude Welton
  
• Can I Tell you about Asperger Syndrome - Jude Welton
  
• A Book about What Autism Can Be Like - Sue Adams
  
• My Autism Book - Tamar Levi