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“It's not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
― Mother Teresa

Autism trends, treatments and therapies routinely make headlines. Often overlooked, though, is the financial burden for many families with autistic children. Treatment is extremely expensive. Direct medical and nonmedical costs can add up to as much as $72,000 a year for someone with an extreme case of the disorder, and even $67,000 a year for those on the lower end of the spectrum, according to a study from the Harvard School of Public Health.

Caring for an autistic child or young adult can be a tremendous emotional, financial and physical strain.  Parents feel judged by society, guilty that their child is missing out and not knowing how best to help them which all takes a toll on the parents and siblings.  For many families, at least one parent cannot work and often families break up under the stress of living with someone with autism, which puts a massive financial burden on them.  Often, autistic people have disturbed sleep patterns and they need constant supervision which is physically exhausting.  As they grow up, the children become too strong to handle if they throw a tantrum.  Parents become isolated and depressed and many would reach breaking point without help.

Siblings, too, suffer from being in a very stressful environment, unable to socialize because of the difficulties at home, and unable to go out as a family. Some become carers for their autistic sibling in an effort to help their parents and the strain and neglect is well documented to have long term psychological effects. Siblings desperately need time out away from their autistic brother or sister to enjoy the same sort of activities and social experiences as their peers.