EBD Blog

What happens when a child with Autism grows up? In “Raising Adam,” Charlene Arsenault explores this issue by examining the case of Adam Davis and his family. Ms. Arsenault’s article, which appeared in the Worchester Magazine (published by Worcehster State College, MA, US) 09 August 2007, has a good combination of tugs on the heartstrings and the difficult real-life problems encountered in providing care for adults with disabilities.

But Adam’s 27 now, and Nancy finds herself stepping toward the most major decision of her life. For parents with severely handicapped children, there usually comes a time where they’ve got to put their faith in another caregiver — when their “kids” have got to move to another living situation for everyone’s sanity. Adam has to move on so that Nancy herself can finally live. He is so ingrained in her daily existence that she has little separation from him; and he is an integral part of his sister Sarah’s and father Rich’s lives as well.

Although the problems are substantial—they must sometimes be overwhelming—for the individuals and their families, there are also problems for public policy. Contemporary emphasis on de-institutionalization, normalization, community services, inclusion, and other similarly widely championed movements add to the problems. Is an in-home placement the appropriate one for everybody? Is a community living environment right for individuals with the most substantial needs for help?

Ms. Arsenault does not directly address these and other related questions, but her story does provide a valuable glimpse at some of the problems that lie just beneath the stories of individuals like Adam and their families. Read the article here.