Welcome Home Joseph

Here he is - red eye and all. After 19 months of being away from home. He spent 8 months in a psychiatric facility with an autism unit. Then almost a year in a local group home preparing him and the family to receive him back in our house. This was a long process. The family had become PTSD victims from all the explosive, dangerous and violent outbursts from Joseph over the years. I contracted with the best Behavioral program in the area to provide care for him in the home. We went over safety plans and readjusted our homes in terms of securing entrances and exits as Joseph bolts often. We labeled the house, set ground rules and wrote "social stories" to help him understand safe behavior. We developed schedules and communication tools as Joseph still has the expressive language of about 2.5years. Its alot of work. Many people confronted me on why I would allow his insanity back in our lives. Two reasons. He is my heart and this is what the Department of Human Services wants: kids at home. Lets hope his gains will continue to grow.