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Let’s talk about the Autism Tax.

We hear a lot about ADHD tax and how we need to buy things to replace the precious items we need to replace (I’m learning to just buy two in an effort to compensate!!). The Autism Tax is different.

It’s what happens when our sensory needs override all of our preparations.

It’s what happens when we spend our lives buying the SAFE foods, the known brands, the familiar meals our families need to satisfy their hunger and provide nourishment., Until it doesnt. And then we are left with cans and boxes of food that we always had in bulk to ensure supplies were to hand.And we don’t know what to fill their gaps with….and we offer alternatives, and we are helpless to the fluctuations of weight, mood, and important nutrients.

It’s the inability to just add the healthy crunchy snacks after school to protect the enamel on our teeth. Because such foods are never ever on our plates, never an option for a person needing consistent, beige dietary options for comfort.

It’s the constant advocacy that we can’t just complete a project on healthy foods for school when we don’t label ANY food when fed is best to keep the kilos on.

It’s the socks. Oh the damn socks. I could write chapters on how socks ruin our days. Chapters. How 6 days out of 7 will be stressful because of socks. How parents search for the perfect, seamless, soft option.

And even then, a thread. A thread. the tears. even our own at times, as we end up late, unable to attend, unable to do the things. because of socks. DAMN YOU SOCKS.

The toothpastes. The options we search for to ensure dental care is maintained and constantly searching for the toothpaste that is NOT SPICY. The toothbrushes. The constant and expensive brushes we try over and over. Fillings are a part of our lives even with all of this.

The events we leave, the ones we never make, the important things that mark milestones that are often too hard, impossible for us to leave, and we are left trapped, helpless to sensory needs that dictate our presence and require us to stop, and give in.

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