Skip to main content

Blog 6 - Unemployed, Covid-19 and autism


Generally, rainbows are considered a good sign. The picture was taken on my way to work and sadly it was my last day at work too. I was terminated without cause. 

This pandemic or Covid 19 that we're experiencing impacted everyone at different levels of hardship. I don't think I have to enumerate them one by one but I'm pretty sure you know what I mean: from losing their jobs, loved ones and up to being quarantined or isolating. 

In my case, it's a lot tougher because not only I lost my job, my son has severe autism too. My son is 13 years old and he's non-verbal. He doesn't know how to read, he's not potty trained, you have to help him when eating and the list of the things he can't do will pretty much fill this blog entirely. 

Because of my son's condition, our lifestyle is very limited. My wife and I can't go out and take my son to a gathering. It's either my wife or I will go. Work schedules too can be challenging. When the pandemic broke out, the school was cancelled as well and so our son needs to stay home. Good thing work from home was an option in our jobs. 

You may say "what's the big deal? Normal kids stayed home too?". Well, my son is a special child which simply means he has special needs. Unlike other normal kids, you can't give my son some activities such as assignments, online learning, games, etc. and expect it to do these activities on his own. 

Right now, we're teaching him matching shapes and colours. That's how basic it is. He likes solitary activities which is a no, no for an autistic kid. His mind has to be occupied by interacting with a human being. Otherwise, he'll not improve or worse, regress. 

TV doesn't even pique his interest. We have Disney+, YouTube, NetFlix, you name it but nothing works for him. 

My son likes to do is eating. He's a hearty eater. He doesn't like soft drinks, juice and milk. He only drinks water. 

Autism doesn't have a cure. Some kids got better and some kids are not. There are some autistic kids that have a high level of intelligence like having a photographic memory. In my son's case, it's the opposite. He's 13 years old but has a brain of 1-year-old, literally. 

So looking for a job that will fit our situation will be tough. All I have to do is be tougher and hope for a big miracle and hoping someday autism will just miraculously disappear.  

My son's hand holding my thumb.















Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Blog 2 - The Cost of Living in Canada

The map of Canada I've been living in Canada for over 15 years now and haven't gone back home since then. I can say that I can give you an idea of the cost of living here in Canada in case you're planning to move here. First of all, you need to know how much is the minimum wage in Canada. Every province has its own minimum wage and here in Manitoba where I live (one of the provinces of Canada), is almost $12 per hour. Basically, this will give you a monthly net income of $1,400 to $1,500 per month. The deductions in your paystub will be roughly 30%. This will typically consist of employment insurance, taxes, pension and health insurance premium (if any) just to name a few.  Isn't health care in Canada is free? The answer to that is yes and no. Health care is not really free because you pay it somehow through your taxes. You don't need to worry about the doctor and hospital bills. But for your medications, dentists, vision health, these are not covered by health care...

Blog 1 - Becoming Filipino

A photo of Kyle (right). Photo credit: Kyle Jennerman  I’m a fan, follower, subscriber or call it what ever you want. I’m talking about Becoming Filipino. It’s a YouTube channel created by Kyle Jennerman also known as Kulas (his Filipino name). Basically, Kyle films his daily life in the Philippines and share it to the world. From my understanding, Kyle is a Canadian, living in the Philippines for several years now and has traveled 80 provinces of the Philippines.  Life in the Philippines is very simple compare to the western world like Canada. I know that very well because I’m a Filipino.  Sometimes, I wonder what compelled Kyle to moved to the Philippines. For many Filipinos, the main reason why they migrated to other countries is because of financial reasons. Some are just really tired of the politics and corruption. For me, aside from financial reason, one of the reasons that compelled me to move to Canada is because of the health care system. My wife had cesarean whe...

Blog 8 - My take on Sony WF 1000XM3

Like anybody else, I hate the way Sony named these earbuds. Coming from an AirPod user, I developed a love and hate with these earbuds. Although I must say I will never go back with AirPod after using them. Here are my likes and dislikes after using them for several months now.   Likes: Noise-cancelling.   These earbuds will significantly reduce ambient noise. I used these while I’m in the living room with the TV on and I barely hear the TV. The TV is connected to a soundbar and the volume is at 30 percent.   I’ve also used these in a cafe, food court, grocery and mall and the noise cancelling is really impressive.   I’ve also used these while walking outside and I don’t hear the vehicles 1 block away. You will hear the vehicles if they passed you by.   Sound quality.   When I’m listening to Jason Mraz, Jack   Johnson or a similar genre, I can hear every beat. You can also adjust the equalizer in the app according to your sound preference.   Ambie...