A Letter to the Family and Friends of An Autism Parent

By Kate Swenson | November 4, 2016 |

Dear friends and family, I am sitting here thinking about our relationship. And about how much I love you. And how I rarely see you. We joke that it’s because life is so busy. We have jobs and babies. Life is crazy. And how some day it will be better. We will have more time. One of these days we will actually get together and do something. I’m not sure if that’s entirely true though…at least not for me. We are different. We are friends. We are family. But we…

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When The Caregiver Gets Depressed

By Kate Swenson | October 5, 2016 |

There is a stigma around depression. A really, really ugly one. And I think there is especially a stigma around mother’s who have depression. If you are depressed you are weak. You are broken. You are medicated. You cry a lot. You sleep a lot. This isn’t true. At least not for me. I am not weak. I am freakishly independent. I am not broken…completely. I am not medicated. And I rarely sleep. In saying that…. I just came out of an extremely low few days. Sadness is not an…

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My Greatest Pity Party

By Kate Swenson | October 16, 2015 |

Is Cooper my greatest pity party? Such an interesting question. It was said to me the other day. In anger of course, but there was something behind it. It had some legs on it. And it truly got me thinking. Is Cooper my greatest pity party? Hhhmmm. I am very open that I am heartbroken over Cooper’s autism. It’s gotten better after almost 5 years but, nevertheless, the heartbreak is still there. I am also a tad bit bitter over how my life is different. Which is the part that a…

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