The ASD Lifeline Program

Counseling & Support Services for Autism Spectrum & Related Childhood Disorders (such as NLD, ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, Anxiety and Mood Disorders), Traumatized & Undiagnosed Children

En Español

– Recent Events –

– Now Enrolling for Winter Session: Neuro-Sibs Support Group –

– NEW: Parent & Professional Autism Intervention Workshops –

Helping Parents of Children with Disabilities and Special Needs Get the Help They Need

We offered a 3-hour training to Santa Cruz County's Child and Family Development Programs Department on March 8, 2010 in Aptos, California. About 60 staff were in attendance. Their roles ranged from teachers, classroom aides, home workers to case managers and school board members. The goals of the training were to: 1) increase participants' empathy and understanding of the daily challenges faced by parents of children with special needs, in particular Autism Spectrum Disorders, 2) inform participants of "red flags" for identifying children at risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders, 3) provide participants with tools for successfully communicating to parents their concerns about their child in a home or classroom environment, and 4) provide a roadmap for guiding parents in getting the services they need for their child and family. The presentation was rich with real life examples from a parents' perspective and enhanced by a professional's knowledge. The ASD Lifeline Program developed a resource manual for these professionals to help them guide their clients from concern to treatment

For more information or if you are interested in this training for your group/staff, please contact AnaMaria Guevara, LCSW.

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Neuro-Sibs Support Groups: What about the typical brothers and sisters?

Currently Enrolling Only $35

Wednesdays, 4:30-5:30 pm (ages 6-8)

Meeting Dates: Wednesdays (June 1,8,15,22,29, July 6,13,20,27)

Location: 2542 S. Bascom Ave., Suite 250; Campbell, CA 95008

Facilitator: AnaMaria Guevara, Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Siblings of children with special needs are impacted in many ways. Along with their parents, they spend the most time with their siblings. They may feel anxious and worried about their sibling and their own future. Sibs often feel lonely, resentful, angry, sad, confused and frustrated. They may not share their feelings because they don’t want to burden their already stressed parents. They may also experience academic decline, social isolation, low self-esteem, issues of depression and/or anxiety. Siblings often also have some needs of their own and may need support learning to socialize with peers.

This group will provide the following to your child:

Safe and confidential therapeutic environment to share his/her experience with other peers.
Opportunity to explore his /her feelings.
Normalize his/her experience and create a sense of community.
Information about diagnosis to help him/her better understand his/her sibling and to build empathy.
Tools for interaction with his/her sibling to build a sense of competence in their interactions.
Guided exercises to explore alternatives to problematic situations at home or school (role plays, journaling/narratives, matching with peer for peer support, etc).
Respite time from sibling relationship and opportunity to learn to develop healthy peer social interactions.
Play time and relaxation.

Each child responds differently depending on his/her personality and family dynamics. Problematic patterns of interactions present in the sibling relationship get re-enacted with peers. The group is an opportunity for the clinician to identify these patterns for each child, support the child in making change, and inform the parents of strategies to support their child in his/her ongoing social emotional development.

Some siblings are better able to cope than others but they too enjoy the play opportunity with other peers who have similar family stories to share. For these siblings, group is an opportunity to feel validated, supported and encouraged.

The participants are required to bring a snack or their dinner to group. Eating together is a great natural social opportunity. As adults, we often schedule coffee, lunch or dinner with a friend to catch up or for support.

Parents will be offered a half hour free consultation at the conclusion of the 10-week group session. During this consultation, you can expect to receive feedback about your child's performance during group (progress and areas of need). Recommendations about how you can continue to support your child will also be offered. A sign-up sheet will be made available to parents two weeks prior to the last session.

Fee for this group is $35 per child per group. A total cost of $315.00. Invoices for insurance reimbursement will be provided for each client. Full payment is required during time of registration.

A maximum of six children will be accepted for this group.

Individual therapy is also available for your sibling.

Download Neuro-Sibs Support Group Flyer PDF.

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NEW – Parent & Professional: Autism Intervention Workshops

Who Should Attend?
These workshops are open to professionals and parents.

Professionals who are seeking ideas of how to better understand and support their Autism Spectrum Disordered (ASD) clients and their families would benefit from these workshops. Parents seeking information and ideas about how to address these challenging topics in their own families would find these presentations helpful.

Information will be presented from both the parent and professional perspective with the goal of bridging the communication and promoting collaboration for the benefit of the child.

Facilitators: AnaMaria Guevara, Licensed Clinical Social Worker & ASD Parent
Tracey Gatheral, ASD Resource Specialist and ASD Parent

Date & Time: Saturdays, 10 am- 12 noon

Location: Our office (2542 S. Bascom Ave. Suite 250, Campbell, CA 95008)

Advanced Registration is required.

October 23rd, 2010
Preparing for Educational Success: Learn how to develop/ design a school binder for your special needs child, how to bridge the relationship between your providers and the educators, and how to support your child on a daily basis with school stress or school induced anxiety. Presenters will also address how to select the best educational program/school for your child.

November 20th, 2010 Neurotypical Siblings: How to support siblings, explain diagnosis, tap into the HUGE benefits of having a sibling, and identify trouble in your typical child. Siblings often get dragged to their brother’s or sister’s therapies, and spend hours in waiting rooms along with their parents. Why not include them in the treatment goals? Appropriate involvement of the siblings benefits the whole family.

December 11th, 2010
Tips for Successful Outings: Planning, rehearsing, packing, and adjusting for successful trips to restaurants, birthday parties, doctor’s visits, theme parks, etc. Practical assessment tools for parents about how to assess the child’s readiness, the appropriateness of the environment and the parent’s own emotional readiness for the task. Isolation is real and detrimental for children and families. (Includes seasoned parent panel)

February 26th, 2011
Successful Parent-Child Interactions: How to initiate and sustain meaningful interactions with your child during daily activities. How to build-in those language, social, and adaptive skills into daily living. Basic knowledge of language and social cognition to teach parents regardless of their educational level to empower them in their interactions. Many parents just don’t know what to do or ask the professionals working with their children. You can help.

March 26th, 2011
Marriage as a Partnership: Exploring issues of communication, fatigue (emotional and physical), new roles and redefining relationship/family expectations. Insights about how to help couples preserve their relationship or how to co-parent their special needs child. Parenting a child with special needs presents challenges that exhaust couples, putting incredible stress on marriages. Divorce rates have soared to 85% during the first five years after diagnosis.

Download About Curing Autism - Help, Hope and Support - E-Newsletter January 2008 #1.

Why should I attend?
One in every 91 children in the US has autism (American Academy Pediatrics Report)
A new child is diagnosed with autism every 20 minutes (Autism Speaks)
These children are in your family, at your school, church, neighborhood, and clinics.

We are our own tool for change, so the more we improve ourselves the better we can parent our children.

How to register?
Cost is $25 per person per workshop. Price includes materials and refreshments.

Advanced registration is required.

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NEW –

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