Supporting Young Adults With Learning Disabilities
Americans have been positively affected by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), which mandates that certain services and assistance be given to people with disabilities. As effective as this law is, there are still many loopholes that fail to provide all the necessary support persons with disabilities need. Special needs services provided by caring needs assistant providers can bridge the gap and provide people needing assistance with daily life issues a reliable resource. An adult with special needs wanting to live independently can face many obstacles. Being able to secure the help to make independent living a reality is a integral component of making an adult with special needs become self sufficient.
What Services Are Provided
Special needs support comes in various forms and can be delivered in such a way as to empower the special needs adult. Wanting to have the skills to maintain their lives and live alone or with a roommate requires special needs adults to seek out resources and special needs providers. From securing a job for special needs adults to help with renting an apartment, managing their finances and staying on a budget, cooking healthy meals and other social skills the special needs assistant will provide the support needed.
Securing Employment
Most adults whether special needs or not need to have employment to support their lifestyle. For special needs adults procuring employment can present unique challenges. Having someone that will walk with the special needs adult through the job seeking process, assist in completing the job application and help prepare for the job interview is paramount in becoming independent. Special needs assistants are trained and experienced in providing this support to those who need assistance.
Managing Finances and Staying on a Budget
Once the job is secured and the apartment or living space is a reality the special needs adults will have to maintain their lifestyle and special attention needs to be given to how to manage money and live within budget constraints. In addition to paying rent or mortgage, the special needs individual will have to learn how to manage utility bills, buy food and clothing and set aside some funds to have fun. Special needs counselors and providers will assist in integrating these life skills into the day to day management of independent living.
Special needs support is often provided by Life Coaches in an academic program especially designed to prepare young adults with special needs to live alone. These same services can be tailored to the special needs adult on a one to one basis by a special needs assistant within your community. These individuals will not only provide all the services mentioned above but will also address local issues such as transportation navigation, involvement in community activities, and the preparation of healthy meals. The personal connection with the “life skills coach” will build confidence in the adult with special needs and enable them to effectively maintain their independent living choices.
Barbara Richardson owns Elements Services: Special Needs Support Services provided at the home of young adults with various disabilities in the Chicago-area. Barbara offers Life skills/Coaching which includes Budgeting, Career supports and Social support. You can become a fan of Elements Services on Facebook here.
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About The Author
Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts is founder of Support for Special Needs and has been a regular contributor since its inception in May 2010. A mom to two kids with special needs, she didn't want other parents to feel what is the often isolating world of raising a child (or two!) with disabilities. Her kids had kidney transplants at the age of eight and will need liver transplants in the future as a result of ARPKD/CHF. They both have vision disorders and learning disabilities.
My son is a special need adult living at home. How ever he is highly functional, Graduated with a regular high school diploma. He would like to go back to school but we have no money, and dont know how to go about getting the help he needs to live a productive life. Where can he go to get help so he might be able to go back to go back to school or learn a trade or even an apprentice program.
Marlene,
I would check with your health department. In Atlanta there are a lot of little organizations that can offer that but sometimes they need to be on SSI. If you have a Lutheran services group in your town, I found them to be very helpful and have a lot of information. Also check with Job Corps through the state and government. Mostly is it just calling, using google and key words and asking people you reach and call more!
I was able to get a relative a volunteer position a few days a week so he could get some skills. Turns out he didn’t want to keep working on working so it didn’t work out, but for someone motivated it could be a good start. It was at a retirement community.
Good luck!
My daughter is 27 and has special needs in that she has hearing loss and learning disabilities but not to the point of not being able to function and interact normally.She is still at home with us. She wants to meet other young people like herself. We go to church and she is very out going but its hard for her to have any meaningful relationships because people don’t give her a chance. She is lonesome.
I have a nephew that is special needs 24 years old and needs a social life. He loves people and I hope we can start a group for these adults with supervised activities. I hope to start something in our community-any ideas?
Hi Debbie,
My son is 25 and has similar issues with finding friends. I’ve been thinking about opening something in our area so that my son and other young adults with disabilities can mingle and meet other people. Please let me know what your thoughts were with what you were going to start in your area.
My daughter is 27 and has special needs in that she has hearing loss and learning disabilities but not to the point of not being able to function and interact normally.She is still at home with us. She wants to meet other young people like herself. We go to church and she is very out going but its hard for her to have any meaningful relationships because people don’t give her a chance. She is lonesome.
Melba, my daughter and yours are in very similar circumstances ..slight hearing loss, some learning disabilities but able to live in her own apartment and work a few hours per week. She, too, struggles to meet new friends as the whole world just moves too fast for her. She has found some groups online that she enjoys chatting with and she has been able to get together with some of the people as well. Do you live in the Midwest? I understand your need to support your daughter as I feel the same.
My daughter is 20….same scenerio.
We also haven’t found anything. Where are you at in MidWest. We are in MI.
my son is 23 years old he has an high school diploma but he cant read…..
My son has traumatic brain injury, he has several challenges that effect him daily, he also has not been able to make friends. The opportunity came for us to relocate from Chicago to Virginia, which turned out to be a blessing for him. Previously I worried daily about him growing up, trying to join the workforce and so on. We were told he has O.C.D. also, which is now turning out to be the key to him being one day financially independent. He has turned that what was thought as a hinderance into his own business . He designs earrings and sells the whole to boutique in the area also online. He has learned how to budget to replenish his inventory and is making goals to step up his price point by using higher quality materials. So in my opinion entrepreneurialism is the way to go. Finding these kids/adults niches is key!
I have been through so much I want to go to a jewish school I live in florida and no one cares to help me people think all I care about is my self and that is a lie their are 19 thousand people on the waiting list for services in fl that have special needs . do you know how I can get my life back
My brother is 24 years old and he is a down syndrome. We migrated to Canada in 2012 from Dubai where he worked for a company for over a year. We have been trying to find a job for him but we have failed and would like to know if there are opportunities for my brother
Thanks