A Trial of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy for Caregivers - A research project evaluating Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) for parents of individuals with autism. Presented by York University and Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (camh)

What is the research about?

This is a research project evaluating the benefits of Acceptance & Commitment

Therapy (ACT) for parents. ACT seeks to help individuals to struggle less with

difficult things in their lives and mindfully connect with things that are most

important in a way that is loving and respectful. With an introduction to the

concept of ‘mindfulness,’ ACT does not attempt to directly change or stop

unwanted thoughts or feelings, but to develop a new mindful relationship with

those experiences that can free a person up to being open, and to take action

consistent with what they care about. Each workshop is facilitated by a parent of an

individual with autism and a trained clinician.

Who should attend?

• Mothers and fathers of children, youth and adults with autism. Fluency in English is required.

What does participation involve?

Participating involves attending three workshop sessions held in London, Ontario:

Workshop 1:

Friday, April 12, 5:30pm-9:00pm   

Saturday, April 13, 9:00am-4:30pm 

Saturday, May 11, 1:00pm-4:30pm

Workshop 2:

Friday, September 13, 5:30pm-9:00pm

Saturday, September 14, 9:00am-4:30pm

Saturday, October 19, 1:00pm-4:30pm

• You will be randomly allocated to attend either Workshop 1 or Workshop 2.
• As a participant, you will need to attend all three sessions and complete some questionnaires before the workshop, and again three times after that.
• Participation in the workshop is free.

I’m interested! What next?

For more information, please contact Andrea Maughan, at amaughan@yorku.ca.

For more information on ACT workshops, you can check out our short video the : https://www.surreyplace.ca/caring-for-the-caregiver-through-act/

As well as these articles: http://rdcu.be/I6jT & https://bit.ly/2tSUbcZ

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has been researching how to support parents and adults on the autism spectrum. As part of this research, they are holding a free web-based mindfulness group for parents and their adult sons and daughters on the autism spectrum to participate in together to learn ways to cope with stress.

Groups will run for 6 weeks on Wednesdays.

Time: 7:00 pm to 8:30pm (log-on at 6:45pm)

Dates: November 7, 14 & 21, December 5,12 and 19, 2018

If this is something you might be interested in learning more about, please complete the form and send it to Brianne Redquest at brianne.redquest@camh.ca.

Hello.  My name is Laura MacGregor and I am a doctoral student at Wilfrid Laurier University.  I am completing a study of mothers who have a child with a developmental disability where the child's disability interferes with typical communication.   My study focuses on how mothers experience interconnection with their child and how they describe this interconnection to others, particularly health professionals.  In other words, I am interested in how mothers learn to "read" their children.   I am asking mothers of a child of any age who has a developmental disability as well as a communication challenge to consider participating in my study.   If you are interested I would love to hear from you via macg4706@mylaurier.ca or (519) 885-3467.  This study has been reviewed and approved by the university ethics committee (REB #5750).

If you are a parent or primary caregiver of a child or youth diagnosed with autism living in Ontario you are invited to provide your feedback on Ontario autism services, education, and family stress & well-being through an online questionnaire.

Please click here for more information on this project. The survey should take approximately 15-30 minutes of your time. As a small token of thanks for your participation, you may choose to enter a draw for a grand prize of $500 or one of three consolation prizes of $100, following completion of the survey.

This project has been reviewed and approved by the Wilfrid Laurier University research ethics board (REB #5422).