The very sad thing is that the tongue in cheek parent is not completely fictional. I have come across many in autism support groups and the like. It is a very sad state of affairs that so often it seems to be far more about the mom and their suffering than on the support and the best outcomes for the actual autistic child involved.
I could easily reel off a bunch of things that are struggles in some respects, that would “qualify” me but how does that assist my kids. How does it bring them acceptance, inclusion and the possibility of the best possibly outcomes?
I’d like to nominate my mother
I would also like to nominate the mom in Upworthy’s latest autism article as of August 23, 2016, entitled “A mom of a kid with autism wants you to know why she’s exhausted”. This article is a classic “autism mom” narrative, so if you don’t want to read yet another one of those, do not search for it.