Abbie is not the face of Autism, nor of a princess, by any means. I've always hated the term princess, it's annoying and tends to put someone on a higher level than others. I can't take that word seriously, esp when they use it.
They have also ruined "sweet girl" for me. I can't say that or use that term any longer without wanting to puke.
Strangely enough, I know two other little girls (one is six, the other is four) who are both autistic and their parents each call them "sweet girl" and "princess". It's very strange to me.
The other thing I've been thinking about and has been mentioned here a few times is how the Maass family are in denial over Abigail. It's pretty obvious, but it's also just really, really sad. There's a lot about this family that bothers me, but I still feel a lot of compassion when it comes to this.
Abbie is 15. Grief isnt a straight line, but it seems strange to me that it's just ignored entirely. Burying it is making it more difficult for them. I feel like I relate to P sometimes (as in I can understand where shes coming from). I believe that she felt close to Abbie and tried reaching out to her many times.
However we can see a lot of incidents where abbie lashes out at Cilla. Some here think maybe that is because she has always been neglectful/ distant, but...
As a mom of two autistic children, who has done all the things to ensure my kids have the care and resources and my time as they need, sometimes kids take their anger out on the more patient of the parents. My husband doesnt receive half the behaviours that I have- despite me being the person that makes them stick to routine, regular meals, and boundaries.
I think sometimes that cilla's distance is after years of being attacked by her daughter. I feel so bad when I see that cilla is afraid of abbie. And I understand it.
I feel very securely attached to my kids. However, back in August, we were preparing to put my oldest in school. They had a program here that would put them in a school setting for four hours a day three days a week. It got him used to the routine, etc.
During this time, my 6.5 yo child, at 40 lbs (I'm 95lbs) would hit, kick, scratch, and if he could, wrap his hands around my neck. I would have to pick him up and move him places when he was melting down because he will hurt himself or others, but in doing that, his anger would turn on me.
This lasted a few weeks, where he would melt down on me and attack like that. I cant imagine that being almost every day. Even at the time, I had to internally decide what my limit was for this kind of thing. He is seven now, 45lbs. He's four feet tall (I'm 5'2", and have POTS).
He is very likely to outgrow me relatively soon. So my husband and I sat down and said, if this continues, when do we decide that he (or our other child) is unsafe to live with? It's a hard conversation. I hope we will never have to go back to it.
Anyway, I'm sort of all over the place but hope I'm being clear. Sometimes it is really hard to discipline these kids- not to say that we never try, but a lot of punishments really dont phase them.
I really hope tho that P and A start really tackling emotionally, with a therapist, about Abbie. Hey Asa, I think that would actually be pretty good content. I want to see you guys meet Abbie where she's at, instead of this weird pretend show that is obviously highly edited.
Really start tackling the IDD. What is affecting what?? I see a lot of abbie in my youngest child. I bet other autist families also have some IDD mixed in there. Help Priscilla start to accept that this is who abbie is. That there isnt anything wrong or less about abbie because of it.