Hello All,
     Last night was fairly difficult for Anabelle, however, I was reminded how amazing a tool the iPad is, for Anabelle.  The iPad helps her in a more than a few ways:

1)  The Proloquo2go program is absolutely worth it's weight in gold.  Last night is an example of a time when Anabelle, being stressed and overwhelmed, lost most of her ability to vocalize communication.  Without her iPad and Proloquo to type, our communication would have been reduced to gestures and handwriting.  Proloquo allows Anabelle to see letters and pictures and have the iPad speak for her.  It is faster than hand writing as well as easier for her to use.  She was able to quickly communicate with me regarding normal everyday things instead becoming quickly frustrated and angry at herself for not being able to talk.  



2) The iPad allows Anabelle to carry with her at all times, multiple alarms for various daily/weekly/monthly activities, as well as multiple calendars, timers, documents, photos, and the internet!  The iPad's organizational amazingness gives Anabelle the reassurance that she knows what is happening in her life at all times. This leads to a feeling of confident control where there would otherwise be overwhelmed desperation. 



3) Games may seem trivial, but there are endless amounts of free games available for download.  Games allow Anabelle to focus her overactive brain on something trivial like say. . . protecting a house from Zombies using a Garden of defensive plants, instead of obsessing on how painfully loud the multitude of sounds are in the Light Rail, bus, car, or crowded area, which will eventually lead to a meltdown.  


     There are many more amazing things for which the iPad helps Anabelle, I just chose to focus on the most obvious ones.  


     The iPad is an all around amazing tool, for anyone, especially for those on the Autism spectrum.