Intake Day

No smart ass post today. This is about my real life.

Today is Intake Day for my DS with autism. He will start his Adult Day Program after the 4th of July, in a place just south of Minneapolis.

This is a place where the hard cases go - young adults who are just too much to handle for a typical structured workshop. While he is quite rational in an autismy kind of way, the DS is very opinionated and capable of sudden, random violence. On a fairly regular basis he will hit, pinch, kick, spit upon and knock down people. This makes him (and rightly so) a "hard case." (DS is 21 years old, 6'2", and has all his dad's champion athlete quickness and reflexes. He can be scary.)

This is the one place in the Twin cities that specializes in hard cases and openings are hard to get and on an as-needed-most basis. When we enquired about placing DS there for a day program they talked to his HS teachers (he graduated this month) and said 'yes' at once, lol. No hesitation.

I toured the facility in early April. Physically it is quite adequate. The staff is wonderful! And fearless, lol. For a kid like my DS the capabilities of the staff are everything. I think he will do well here.

So DS will spend his days (5 - 6 hours per day) putting together packets of flyers for a small community newspaper and working on basic job and social skills. And having lunch which is always his favorite part of the day. They will also have weekly outings just for a treat. Their goal is that one day he can move on to a sheltered workshop.

I'm not complaining here. I am glad this facility is available and they will accept DS into their program. It is very hard to find a good adult day program for a 6'2" 'hard case' who needs 24/7 supervision.