Discussion forum for parents in Australia
08-24-2020 12:04 AM
Hi everyone, I'm new here. I found this site looking for groups and places I can get help and suggestions on issues with my kids. Right now I'm concerned deeply about my 14 year old daughter. She is a special needs teen who is as normal as a 14 year old in every other area but who has something called speech apraxia (it affects her ability to speak clearly; she knows what she wants to say but it gets jumbled up before it comes out) and is therefore in classes at school with the special needs kids who are severely disable and so she has not made any friends at school where most kids find their friends. Every year it hurts her more and more as the one neighbor who was filing that spot for her has moved on to boyfriends and work and high school. She is two years older than my daughter and doesn't have time for her anymore.
I am looking for any suggestions, help and support with this issue. It breaks my heart especially when my other kids have friends over every day and sleep overs every weekend. Where are the best places to help foster friendships? Are there any resources for this type of thing? Any help is greatly appreciated.
08-24-2020 12:42 PM
Hi @14yroldsMomlost ,
Welcome to our Parents forums, and thanks so much for posting here - I can hear how deeply your care for your daughter. It must be heartbreaking to see your daughter struggling to find friends to connect to. It looks like you're posting from the USA, is that right? We are an Australian service, so I don't have a lot of specific knowledge of what services that may be available where you are. I did have a few ideas that might help though:
* Meetup.com groups: a lot of areas have pretty active MeetUp groups, which you can search by area/ interest
* Volunteering can be a great way to meet people, especially if it ties in with her interests/ passions
* Organisations like Girl Guides/ Scouts
* Online gaming can be a great way for some teens to get social interaction, especially if they have problems with verbal communication.
* Joining a sports club
We also have some resources here for parents who are wanting to help their teenagers to make friends.
Does your daughter have any interests or hobbies that she enjoys?
It looks like you’re visiting us from a country other than Australia.
We are an Australian service and think you’d benefit more from looking up a similar service in your country.
You are welcome to look around the forums, but please don’t make an account or post, as we can’t offer you the help you may need.
Before you go ahead and post, you should know that we remove non-Australian accounts – not because we don’t want to help or connect with you, but because we may not be able to provide you with the service that you require.