My son is on the autism spectrum, and at one point a therapist at school spoke up at his annual IEP meeting and asked, "Do you know what could happen if your son doesn't learn to write neater?" Without pause, I responded, "Yeah, I'll have to send him to medical school. No one can ever read his/her physician's scribbles." No one else laughed, but I did.

Nobody should ever be demeaned for their challenges. None of us are without them, and we all need compassion and gentle encouragement to move forward when we are ready.

Now, my son is quite the skilled artist. It took some time and effort, but he developed skills later than some -- and graduated from high school with honors.

Please keep writing from your perspective. It helps so many others whose voices need to be heard.