The Learning Spectrum is excited to announce that it will soon be offering support groups to the parents and siblings of children with autism.
The parent support group will allow parents to voice their feelings, concerns, and frustrations in a safe, supportive environment, with others who are going through a similar situation. It is open to any parent, no matter how recently their child has been diagnosed with autism, or where they fall on the spectrum.
The peer support group is open to siblings. It will offer a comfortable setting to talk about their experiences, feelings and perspectives of having a sibling with autism. Siblings can bring a friend to the support group meeting. This allows the siblings’ friends to better understand what it’s like to live in a home with someone with autism.
Marty Harrison, TLS’s licensed social worker and group facilitator, will lead the support groups. Marty joined the TLS team on October 5, and has extensive experience working with children, teens and adults on the spectrum.
Marty spent 20 years working as a teacher in the Powell, Worthington and Dublin school districts, and as a substitute teacher in the Olentangy Local Schools district. Through her experience, she noticed a growing need for counseling and social support for elementary-aged children. She decided to go back to school, and earned her social work degree from Columbus State Community College.
Marty has used applied behavior analysis and music therapies to work with individuals in adult mental health care facilities, teen summer camps and in preschool and elementary learning centers. She has facilitated mental health support groups, and learned a lot about family interactions, tragedies and addictions.
As a group facilitator for TLS’s support groups, Marty will ensure a clean flow of information, establish very few ground rules, and make sure everyone that wants to speak has the opportunity to address the group.
Marty said the support groups are a great way to include parents as part of the TLS team that supports their child. There is strength in numbers, and if parents can get together and discuss their feelings and challenges, that support would ease a lot of frustrations in the long run.
TLS’s parent and peer support groups are open to all TLS families, and anyone in the local community who is interested in participating.
If you are interested in learning more about TLS’s support groups, contact TLS at 614-844-5433.