Forever Boy: A Mother's Memoir of Autism and Finding Joy
Book by Kate Swenson
DETAILS
Publisher : Park Row; Original edition (April 5, 2022) Language : English Hardcover : 288 pages ISBN-10 : 0778311996 ISBN-13 : 978-0778311997 Item Weight : 13.6 ounces Dimensions : 6.21 x 0.92 x 9.29 inches Best Sellers Rank: #11,190 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #13 in Parenting Books on Children with Disabilities #18 in Parenting Boys #347 in Memoirs (Books) , NATIONAL BESTSELLER With her popular blog, Finding Cooper's Voice , Kate Swenson has provided hope and comfort for hundreds of thousands of parents of children with Autism. Now, Kate shares her inspiring story in this powerful memoir about motherhood and unconditional love When Kate Swenson’s son Cooper was diagnosed with severe, nonverbal autism, her world stopped. She had always dreamed of having the perfect family life. She hadn’t signed up for life as a mother raising a child with a disability. At first, Kate experienced the grief of broken dreams. Then she felt the frustration and exhaustion of having to fight for your child in a world that is stacked against them. But through hard work, resilience and personal growth, she would come to learn that Cooper wasn’t the one who needed to change. She was. And it was this transformation that led Kate to acceptance—and ultimately joy. In Forever Boy , Kate shares her inspiring journey with honesty and compassion, offering solace and hope to others on this path and illuminating the strength and perseverance of mothers. Read more
REVIEW
I just finished reading this book, and I can't even tell you how much it hit home to me. When I first started seeing the reviews come in and people saying that they suddenly felt seen and heard, and this is exactly their life, I had a hard time believing it. But I have to admit that they were ALL right! I was in denial when we first started looking for help and evaluations for my son. I have several cousins who are autistic, and I always said that I can never be that mom. It's just too hard. But God definitely has a sense of humor and handed me 2 autistic kids. I never wanted this life, but yet here I am, wading through an ocean of doctor/ therapy appointments, IEP meetings, and never ending paperwork. Being an Autism Mom is really hard. I won't lie to you and tell you how "great" it is, because it's been a huge struggle for me. It was much easier when my kids were younger and I could spend all day taking them to the therapy center for hours at a time. But now that they are 6 and 8 things are much harder. As I sat here reading Foreveer Boy, the last couple of days, so many of the experiences that Kate talks about, I found myself nodding along with. I too have kids that only eat maybe 5 foods. I too feel like I live in a prison with locks and alarms on every door and window in my home. I too spend most of my time researching new doctors and therapists that my kids need, and chauffeuring them from appointment to appointment. I spend way too many hours of my life filing out different evaluations and going to IEP meetings. I too have a massive stack of medical paperwork for each kid. A few years ago I uploaded my kids' autism diagnosis paperwork to my phone, because I was constantly needing to share it with different doctors and therapists. I no longer have to go home and dig through a file. I just pull up the files on my phone, and both diagnoseses are right there at my finger tips, ready to be emailed to the next person. Forever Boy is my life. In reading Katee's words, parts of my life replayed through my head. Both of my kids are on the autism spectrum, and they are both at different ends. What works for one of my kids doesn't at all work for the other one. My son is mellow and independent, but my daughter is incredibly needy and demanding. My son is happy to sit playing video games or playing on his tablet all day. But my daughter constantly jumps from activity to activity, and will burn the house down if you dare to take your eyes off of her for more than a second. My son is fully verbal, but my daughter ... She is no longer non-verbal, but she still has some really tough moments where she struggles to speak and express herself. There are behaviors, anxieties, and aggressions, really tough moments when I feel like a complete failure, and some really fun moments of pride and joy. Everything about this book exactly describes my life. I have the husband with the nerves and patience of a saint while I am spiraling out of control, trying my hardest to just hang on and make it through each day. I highly recommend this book to everybody who works with children. Teachers, nurses, doctors, etc. So many people have no idea what our life is like and therefore have no idea how to help us. I am constantly educating people on our autistic life, and literally begging for help. I really want to give this book to every teacher, doctor, nurse, and therapist who works with my kids. Forever Boy will completely open your eyes, and just for a moment, help you to experience what so many autism parents go through from moment to moment. This book is a definite must read! I promise, you won't regret picking it up, and reading through. And maybe when you are done, you will understand our life and journey just a little bit more than you used to. Being an Autism parent isn't a death sentence. It's just a different kind of life. But no matter how hard things might get for you, you are never alone. You aren't the only mom asking "why me?" "Why my child?" There are so many of us struggling right there with you. But as hard as the struggles might be for us, we have the happiest kids in the world.
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