For now, here are some articles, and more materials will be available soon. Feel free to reach out to Wendy, and she can discuss trainings, consultations, and when the materials will be ready, as well as address specific concerns you may have for using The 5 Needs with your work or organization: the5needsinlife@gmail.com
Helpful website: Organization for Autism Research
Hover your mouse cursor over the following titles to visit the relevant websites:
Can I Get a Job?
It can be very difficult for young adults with autism to find jobs in today’s society. In this original blog post, Wendy Swenson details the ways in which a fictitious character with autism can perform successfully in a workplace with the proper support along the way. I have heard students ask, “Can I get a … Continue reading
Enjoy the Good: A Mother’s Story
Wendy Swenson is the mother of young adults and is proud to say she is now a grandmother too. She is currently enjoying life in Virginia with her son, Tim. She works as a school social worker and has a private practice as a licensed clinical social worker. You can reach her through her Web … Continue reading
An Introduction to The 5 Needs
This blog post introduces a series of forthcoming posts by Wendy Swenson, MSW, LCSW about “The 5 Needs” and how they apply to individuals with autism. An Introduction to The 5 Needs Have you heard of The 5 Needs? The 5 Needs are … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Staying Alive
Staying alive sounds easy, but is it really? The 5 Needs explores everything related to Staying Alive – from health and nutrition, exercise, hygiene, emotional and spiritual well-being, suicide prevention, and everything in between. Paying bills, budgeting, and managing time is included too. Staying Alive can be complicated! At times it can be a simple … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Love and Belonging
Going into the Christmas season, talking about love and belonging may seem strange to some folks and depressing for others. We all know the holidays are “supposed” to be full of love and belonging, but we also know that some people are not able to enjoy the holidays. When you have a child of any … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Freedom and Boundaries
We all know how important it is to teach our children (even as young adults) about freedom and boundaries, but we may not have realized that understanding freedoms and boundaries may come easier to some than others. So, when we have a child, teen, or young adult with special needs, we need to be persistent … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Power
We often feel powerless. Our kids can often feel powerless. We are not; neither are they. This month I got some help with this post. You will see what I mean…. Thankfully, we are all so different! Yet, we are all more alike than we sometimes realize too. Power sounds easy for some folks. We … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Fun
The 5 Needs: Fun – Fun is one of The 5 Needs that we can often say, “Sure, we have fun.” But what specifically is fun for you? What is fun for your child? Fun differs from person to person. We all need it, and sometimes we neglect having fun for the sake of being busy. … Continue reading
The 5 Needs: Wrapping Up
Our perspective on life can change by simply looking through the lens of The 5 Needs. Wendy Swenson wraps up how impactful these basic needs are to live a powerful, loving, fun, free, and loving life. We are all different, so how we meet The 5 Needs will be different too. Our stage in life.
If you would like more information, feel free to contact Wendy at wendy@the5needs.com.
Thank you for sharing your time with us.
