The daily tasks of parenting a child with autism can be exhausting and time-consuming. In my home, morning used to be the most chaotic time of day. The last thing I wanted was to start the day stressed out, so I decided to make some changes in hopes of making my mornings run smoothly.

I tried many things with varying degrees of success. What I found to work the best (at least for us) were these 4 tasks that are now a standard part of our routine.

While picky eating is an issue for many children, children with autism seem to have exceptionally limited diets. Nutrition is a concern of many parents, since building variation into a child’s diet can be quite challenging.

The five tips below are intended to help you ensure better health and, at the same time, offer the opportunity for you to work on independent living, socialization and organizational skills with your child.

Make a Menu

The most common question I receive is, How do I implement a gluten/ casein free (GFCF) diet for my child with autism?, and it is certainly an important one! However, it’s equally important to understand why this diet is used to treat symptoms of autism. So here’s a very simplified explanation.