I have had a lot of therapies in my life. I am thrilled with them all and value every single goal I have because I was included in creating my plan. I highly recommend having autistic people be aware of all of their goals, even if they don’t have a way to communicate yet. It makes therapies much more enjoyable if you understand the point of what you are working on. What may feel like busy work without knowing the goal may actually be the most important skill you’re working on.

If you leave autistic people out of the goal process there are risks. There is a good chance they may not agree or see the point of them all. This could lead to difficulties building relationships with their team and not buying into the therapy. If you don’t agree with your own therapy, there’s a good chance you won’t try very hard. Because I like what I do so much, I always put my best effort in. I really want more autistic people to value what they do. That starts with teams considering us as valuable members.