Siblings & Autism: How Are Kids Affected by Special Needs Brothers & Sisters

It's a question that not everyone asks or even thinks about, unless you are the parent to more

than child and especially if you are a parent of a child with special needs and a child/children with no special needs.

How are your other children affected by your aspergers child?

An estimated five million "developing" Canadian children have siblings with some type of disorder (eg., ADHD, Austism Spectrum Disorder, Cerebral Palsy, Downs, Depression), and often these children can feel left out, pushed behind the parental wall while parents focus on the child with special needs, and left feeling empty, alone and un-loved.

When Trace was born, JJ was seven years old. He was so excited to have a little brother. Heck, he was excited just to have a sibling that belonged to him. He had dreams and plans, things he wanted to do with his brother, how he wanted to be a big brother and dreams for the future of their relationship.