The cost of housing is not cheap. And with the increase in awareness of this in the news, we wanted to share ideas related to housing for those on the Autism Spectrum and those in the Neurodiverse community.
First--we know that this is only 2 examples of resources and not tailored specifically to the needs of any individual, especially someone with more severe medical needs. Our hope is that this post gives ideas and strategies for creating a compassionate living space, and we will continue posting ideas and tools here in the future.
How to start Building a Life--A program I toured that focuses on young adults ages 18 to 23 has four aspects to each person's schedule: education, recreation, volunteering, and social life. Education--the student must take either classes at a community college, trade school, or university. Recreation--there must be 3x/week where the student is either going to the gym or getting outside for physical activity. Volunteering--could be working with young children, animal shelter, non-profit work, or physical labor. Social Life--students must get out in the community at least 1x/week to a group activity, which could be a role-playing game night, dinner and movie, concert, or get-together at a restaurant. This program provides structures around the roles of the student and how those different roles build skills in the real world. Check out this related program for more ideas:
A Homeless Housing program that addresses a range of issues--In watching this program, we couldn't help but think about the challenges Autistic individuals face when transitioning to adulthood. Yes, it's aimed at the chronically homeless in Austin, TX, but we appreciate their candid discussions about the challenges their community faced prior to having the support, resources, and friendships that this community enables. My favorite quote from this is "housing will never solve homelessness, community will."