Rainbow Tribute

At the time the children were all diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum in July 2007, a good friend of mine Teresa Sandona and I had by then established a professional relationship while working together at the City of Tea Tree Gully (Adelaide, South Australia). Teresa was then and still is a member of the Home and Community Care Team in the Community Services Department. I worked in Human Resources Department as a HR Advisor. It was ironic that the people I had grown closest to at work, who all happened to work with Teresa, were the ones who were my greatest support then when I needed it the most. They are by the way still a very supportive network of friends for me now.

Following the diagnosis, Teresa rang me every single day to make sure I was okay and would often encourage me to get some fresh air by walking with her around Civic Park that was right next to the Council offices. I guess running exceptional community support programs for families just like mine put Teresa in a position where she knew the emotional distress I was facing and the extreme difficulties I was yet to face that I wasn’t even aware of.

Besides all that, Teresa has the most angelic of hearts and she was there as my support simply because she gave herself selflessly to me. I will be forever grateful to Teresa. Her words of wisdom kept me going during the most difficult of times and now they inspire me to not just get through the day, but to give myself to others as she did for me. She is for sure my most special earth angel.

Teresa was the one who brought rainbows into my life in a way that enabled me to see the beauty in each day no matter how challenging it was proving to be. It's ironic though, because all my children really love rainbows and find a rainbow of colour in anything! They instinctively know what cloud formation could produce a rainbow and search the sky until they find one. It's amazing how many they have found that I would never have noticed before. We have even seen an amazing number of double rainbows.

Just today I emailed Teresa because I have been struggling a bit lately with being frustrated and trapped about not being able to go out when I really need some time away by myself. Something always happens that keeps me housebound. I have been so frustrated that I feel like I am going to explode and it is not a healthy way to live. I emailed Teresa because she always keeps things real for me and somehow manages to say something that gets me to really feel my emotions. (I'm good at putting on a front!) The magical thing about Teresa is that she uses rainbow analogies to get a message across and so I want to share with you what she said to me today.

"It's ok for you to on occasion change your colour, get mad, get frustrated get fed up and get blaaaah... This needs to happen because most things are negotiable in life, Autism is not, and when you are trying to manage the things that are not negotiable it takes its toll, however if we relate it to my personal analogy of rainbows, all that frustration is the storm and the rain, and like after any storm and rain the rainbow appears. Most take it for granted, however one should always take notice of the colour because it's always a little different than the one before. We learn something new all the time and while everyday may not be a good day, there is always something in the day that may be good."

Thanks Teresa. I don't know what I would do without having you in my life. You are not just a wonderful support for me, but for so many other mothers like myself in our local community.

So, in Teresa's words.... HAPPY RAINBOWS.

Love Allison xxx

Survival Guide 4 Rainbow Moms: a Big Success on Facebook

I am totally blown away by the response in such a short amount of time to the new Facebook Group that has been set up to support this blog. The Moms and Carers who have introduced themselves and shared their stories in such a positive way gives me those good feeling goosebumps. Thank you to all the people who have joined.

One Mom has shared poems that she has written about her beautiful daughter with us and has given me permission to publish them on my blog. Her it is...

Excuse me, She's Autistic

In the store we wait in line
I and my cinderella girl of mine
She spins, twirls, and her hands make gestures
All in her light blue cinderella gown
Other mothers are there
The glares have began
Do they not know how precious she is?
How much love is contained in her little body?
Just twirling to get out?
My child is getting loudershrill sound pierce the air
The glares demand wordsMy declaration:
"Excuse me she's Autistic".
Faces relax -but the glares remain
We move up in line
Why can't we in life
Somehow there has to be compromise
How I long for acceptance for my cinderella girl of mine.

Angela Utley, Tulsa, OK

Thank you Angela for allowing me to share your poem with everyone.

God bless all our Rainbow Moms and Carers. The world is a better place for having you.

Love Allison xxx

First Post

This is my first post and there is so much I want to share with you, but to be honest I don't really know where to start. I have been on such a turbulent, but exciting journey of self discovery since becoming a mother in 1998. Most of us dream of being a parent when we are little, but never really come to understand how much responsibility raising a defenceless child is. When your child is diagnosed as having special needs, it paints a completely different picture to the one you envisaged as a child. Not only are you unfamiliar with this picture, but in most cases, you have to learn what this means for you all by yourself. All I can say is thank goodness for the internet because it has given us Rainbow Moms a powerful tool to have a voice, stand up and be counted! No longer do we have to take the advice from the medical profession as being gospel, but we are empowered to make our own informed decisions and to start asking questions we weren't previously able to ask.

This blog belongs to all the wonderful Moms out there who are wanting to share their journey with me. So, please write to me and let me know what topics you would like discussed. I also love those funny stories that only Rainbow Moms understand like how cool it is when your child tells a lie for the first time or how exciting it is when they have their first fight at child care. You know what I mean!

Take care
HAPPY RAINBOWS, Allison