Another One Bites the Dust

We lost another sitter.  This is the third one to come once and then call to say they’ve decided not to take the job.  It’s starting to tickle my paranoia.  Do we really come across as such a bad or difficult family to work for?

It’s a challenge getting people to come work with children with autism.  People get turned off or scared if they haven’t had training and if they have, it’s pretty expensive to have them come help.  Not to mention the fear and vigilance I have to have as a parent.  My child can’t tell me if someone frightens him or hurts him (even leaving aside deliberate abuse).

You need patience, creativity and a sense of humour to work with children who don’t give you the normal social cues.  But once you get to know them, they can be some of the sweetest, most genuine people you’ll ever have the privilege to meet.

It’s really frustrated me to have people quit after a single visit.  I’ve introduced them to the children, there’s been the beginning of a bond and then they disappear.  I had to take the latest one off the schedule and I did it at night because I was hoping they wouldn’t remember.  But Nathan asked immediately what had happened to the sitter and I had to tell him she wasn’t coming any more.  I could tell he was upset and hurt.

Now I don’t expect teenagers to think like a parent and I certainly don’t expect them to put their own welfare and prospects on hold just so that my children aren’t upset.  But I think I’m entitled to my own frustration, too.