findings from a qualitative study

Broader research on parenting tends to focus on the hard parts, and this has been mirrored in the literature on the experiences of parenting autistic children (Saccà, Cavallini, & Cavallini, 2019). There is little research on positive experiences when parenting autistic kids, or on parenting an autistic child as an autistic parent.

Evidence to date highlights a range of difficulties for parents arising when parenting autistic children, including poorer wellbeing, higher incidences of stress, anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, poorer quality of life, feeling more socially isolated, and with negative impacts on physical health (Blacher & McIntyre, 2006; Cachia, Anderson, & Moore, 2016; Enea & Rusu, 2020; Yorke,…