looking for fellow calgarian/albertan for advice

Diane - posted on 05/06/2011

I don't live in Canada (we are in the States), but our son has been under the care of a DAN Doctor (Defeat Autism Now!) for ten years, and the medical approach is very specialized, catering to a child's specific, individual issues and needs. There are several DAN Doctors in Canada who have been trained in the DAN protocol: http://www.autism.com/pro_danlists_resul...



The TACA website (Talk About Curing Autism) has much information on next steps after receiving the diagnosis. While the specific resources may not apply in Canada, much of the info will (such as diet, therapies, biomedical treatments, etc.) Newly Diagnosed: http://www.tacanow.org/family-resources/...



Info on many topics applicable to families dealing with autism: http:///www.tacanow.org



Our son was diagnosed with mild-to-moderate autism back in 2001 at age 3, at which time he was non-verbal, significantly delayed in nearly every area of development, and tantrummed on average of 4-6 hours per day in combined episodes. He gave me three black eyes before he turned three by head butts and flinging toys in bouts of rage. Within just a couple of years of intensive intervention and therapy, he greatly improved and was able to mainstream into typical school (with a shadow aide, and ABA therapy afternoons to address his deficits). Fastforward to now, and he is excelling in 6th grade, loving middle school, and most people he meets have no idea of his autism. He still his issues, still is on a special diet with no wheat/gluten nor dairy, both of which make his autistic tendencies and mannerisms much stronger, and he does still have an IEP to go go school (Individualized Educational Plan). But there is no doubt in my mind that he will eventually marry, have children, be able to work and be a taxpayer. This I already know. Regardless of where you live, much can be done to help our children with autism. A diagnosis does not need to be a life sentence.



diane, mother to a soon-to-be teenager with high-functioning autism

Dori - posted on 05/05/2011

thx guys it has been a couple of busy days here so quick update
we have finially recieved an intake worker for FSCD,started sessions with childrens develpoment center at childrens hospital ,on waitlist for renfrew and our dr is contactins A group on our behalf and signing the form for the tax benifits whew i am tired lol but thanks for all the advice ladies

Lori - posted on 05/04/2011

Here are a couple links I found for you to cover some of the bases.
First off there is a GRIT program in Calgary-its a preschool home based program for kids with special needs ages 3-5.
http://www.gritcalgarysociety.com/
Early Education-4-6 yrs
http://www.cbe.ab.ca/programs/spec_ed/se...
Canada Tax Disability Certificate
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/t2201/

Hope some of this helps!

Lori - posted on 05/04/2011

Connie has some great advice-just to follow up on a couple things she mentioned-FSCD-or family supports for disabilities-is primarily -at least here in Edmonton a respite based funding program more than an education but they may be aware of other programs/funding in the area. I think there might be a preschool program available for early education children its typically a program base for kids with needs from ages 3-5. Check Calgary Public school website for info or call the school board. Also the Tax Credit-is a T2201 and you need to get this started asap-you can print off the forms from Canada Revenue or have them mail them to you-you need to ask for the Disability Tax Credit froms. The Dr needs to fill out the Thinking Percieving Functioning portion unless there are issues with other cognitive abilities like hearing or sight. It takes up to 12 weeks to recieve notification of this approval so the sooner it gets sent in the better. Just make sure everything is filled in as per your son's condition and is signed and dated by the dr. When approved you will recieve a lump sum payment and then monthly with your child tax credit after that. Also on your yrly taxes you or husband can also claim the disability credit for a dependant until the yr he needs to be reassessed. Sometimes depending on the results of the assessment initially this assessment can occur 5-10 yrs after the initial approval-once reapproved money is retroactive to date of last payment recieved. However in some cases it can be assessed as permanent and you might not have to go through the reassessment - they will advise on the approval if and when it needs to be reassessed.

Connie - posted on 05/04/2011

Hi Dori;
When our son was diagnosed we were living in Calgary at the time. There are several things that you need to do. First is to get in touch with Family Services for Children with disabilites and get your son into Early Education so that you can get started on getting him some help. We were lucky enough to get our son into Renfrew pretty quickly. They did amazing things with him. They are also very knowledgable with what is available in the community. When we had to move back to Edmonton they were also very good about helping us with the transition. You will also need to apply for the disability tax credit which will give you extra funds (based on your income) to assist with any additional expenses that you may have. You will also want to get referred to the autism center at the children's hospital - you will have access to occupational therapists, speech therapists, nutritionist if needed, sleep clinic if needed. Family Services for Children with Disabilites is the place to start - you will find that it may take a few months to get everything going, a lot of phone calls and follow up but that is where you need to start. Please feel free to message me or email me for more information. Good luck!

Lori - posted on 05/03/2011

Family Support for Children w Disabilities provides respite funding including working care depending on what your needs are. They will not provide the caregiver but do provide a contract and funds if necessary depending on your situation. Check also through the hospital or rehab facility for a SNAP program-Special Needs Assessment Program. If there is a program in your area called GRIT-Getting Ready for Inclusion TODAY-its a home based program for kids with special needs ages 3.5-5 to get them ready for inclusion into a regular or special ed program once they are school age. Its home based-but there is a centre component-a worker comes to work with your child one to one and specialists including occupational and physical therapists are on hand to assist as well depending on the program set up for your child. I am from Edmonton so some of these programs may be based in Edmonton but with Calgary being a large city they should have similar programs and or supports in the area.

Sheila - posted on 04/26/2011

Hi Dori,

I am from Ontario....but if there is a Ministry for Community and Social Services, contact them and then through them contact Pre-School Services...that's how it works in Ontario. HOWEVER, Alberta covers far more than Ontario and I don't know if that is through your ministry of health. Go back to your family physician and ask for guidance. There must be a support agency there (in Ontario, you can contact Autism Ontario) that can help you.

Good luck! And never move to Ontario....we pay out of pocket for everything and it is simply awful how kids on the spectrum go without support.

Sheila