Did you ever work with developmentally disabled adults?

Ok I am going to fm you!!!!

you mean as in Care for and be with a developmentally disabled person? Yes I have.

She was the adopted daughter of my neighbors. She was about 5 years older than me but unfortunately lacked all ability to communicate verbally with accuracy. She would grab your wrist and communicate with a series of grunts and pointing at things until you could understand what she wanted. Her IQ was very low and her ability to remember things was very short.

I spent several summers taking care of her while was in High School and College. She was very difficult to gain trust and very difficult to care for unless you were truly committed. She was unable to 'clean' herself in the restroom and had serious digestive problems that called for a strictly watched diet.

Her sight was limited and meant she had to be watched in case she stumbled into things. She had various health issues caused the the side effects of the drugs that she had to take to make her managble and comfortable.

It took me time to learn her routine. Once I did it was pretty much smooth sailing. It takes a lot of attention to small details and thinking of extreme possiblities with every action. I had a minor emergancy with her and a bottle of peanut butter that ended with a trip to the ER.

They are people like you and me and have their pride and their sense of self. At the same time you find yourself responsible for every action they make and how you handle yourself in tough times.

FM me if you want more details.

PS: I got involved because my father was an orderly back in the day and I was always reading up on Child Psych stuff that my father brought home. The neighbors thought it was worth a shot.

I learned a lot from her.

Hi Jen

My FH used to work at ARC and DDI. He has many years experience working with adults with developmental disabilities. I also teach children with Autism. If you have any questions, please FM me!