Support is needed to get through the daily stress of coping with therapies, doctor’s appointments, phone calls, agencies, paperwork and the school system. If you are lucky you have a supportive partner or maybe a family member. But that just puts that relationship under stress so it becomes a mixed gift. I am the parent of a young man with autism. I know the physical, emotional and financial strain firsthand. There is something so comforting about talking to someone who “gets it”.