Yahoo Lifestyle: Challenges at Christmas Time

“Christmas in our home has had more misses than hits to be honest,” Katherine tells Yahoo Lifestyle.

“But this year I think it will be different. Two of our boys have started to understand the concept of gift giving so our tree will be full of toys that hopefully delight.”

Katherine says despite the high rate of autism, community understanding about the condition or how to interact with people on the spectrum needs greater awareness.

“Sadly, a lot of children and adults with autism feel isolated and are excluded from social activities at school and at work because people don’t understand how to engage with them,” she explains.

“As a result, those individuals suffer because they are excluded.”

When it comes to her own previous experiences around Christmas, Katherine admits they often remain separated from family.

“In the past we have been isolated from family by choice and other attempts have seen us last five minutes at a family member’s home. One year we lasted a few hours,” she tells us.

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