~ The NobleBridge Wealth Family Celebrates World Autism Day ~

CMO NobleBridge Wealth & Autism Mom

There are soo many extras when you have a loved one with special needs of any kind, including Autism, like my little guy Charlie. Life is so full of extras that you can lose sight of the big important things as the little things start to pile up – the extra appointments with specialists; the extra conversations with teachers; the extra steps to putting together a lunchbox each day because getting it right is soo important. Getting each thing right can feel so important that it can also be paralyzing.

Among these extras is worrying about what Charlie’s future will look like – will he learn to talk or communicate with others; will he be able to have a job or even a career one day; will he be okay after I’m gone.

When it came time to make plans for Charlie’s future, the scariest thought to me was, are Corey and I enough to help him – do we make enough to give him enough; will we make the right decisions; will he be vulnerable. These are valid concerns, the hardest part is putting them aside and starting.

So while this is not exactly how we approached it, here is my advice to you, from my heart, based on our experience:

• Find someone you can trust who has been through it before – schools and therapists can be a great resource to meet people who have experience. I’m one of those people too – aimee@noblebridgewealth.com – now you know me
• Don’t be the judge of your income, or your savings – let someone who has the right financial background help you figure it out – you are likely not qualified to do it and a financial professional will be able to provide you with options to plan for your child’s future
• Decide who will care for your child should something happen to you. We chose to have a care team for Charlie, including financial professionals, family, and friends. It is going to be rare to find one person who can do it all – your child needs extra. We selected a team because sometimes the people who have the ability to provide the day to day care are not the same people who can watch over the finances – and that is ok. You don’t need a whole village, of course, but you do want a care team of a few people that you know can work together
• You need a fiduciary who can help you select an insurance program for the trust; you need an attorney who can do the paperwork; you need your team to understand and be comfortable with their roles

So on this World Autism Day, it’s my fervent wish that if you have not already prepared for your child’s future, please take that first step. Once I did, some of the extra worries dropped away, leaving more time for the even more important extras: extra hugs, extra smiles, extra knowing we had done what we needed to do.