Our journey. Our why.
Our Journey
A family's story. A journey of understanding. A mission to make a difference.
Our story: why This Little Light Of Mine exists
Our hope is that by shining a light on our journey, we can help make the path a little easier for someone else.
Every family has a story. Ours is a journey through profound autism, a journey that has changed how we see the world, how we communicate, and how we think about the future.
We are the family behind This Little Light Of Mine, a platform created to share our experiences, raise awareness of autism, and encourage greater understanding of the challenges and possibilities that shape the lives of autistic people and their families.
Our son is a non-speaking autistic teenager with profound autism, ADHD, sensory challenges, and delayed response times.
These are important parts of his life, but they do not tell his whole story.
Our journey has taught us that autism cannot be understood through a diagnosis alone. It requires us to look beyond what we see, recognise that people experience the world differently, and appreciate that communication, participation, and everyday life may look very different from what we expect.
Through This Little Light Of Mine, we want to help others understand these realities while creating space for conversations that matter.
Living with profound autism
Autism is part of our everyday life.
For our family, that means learning to understand communication that does not always happen through spoken words, recognising sensory challenges, allowing for delayed responses, and considering how everyday environments and experiences affect our son.
Things that may appear simple or routine to others can require additional preparation, patience, understanding, and support.
These experiences have taught us that we cannot always measure understanding by how quickly someone responds, or communication by whether someone speaks.
They have also reminded us that every autistic person is an individual, with their own preferences, abilities, challenges, and support needs.
Our experience is one part of a much broader autism community, but it is an experience we believe is worth sharing. Not because we have all the answers, but because honest conversations can help people understand what they might otherwise never see.
Why we share our journey
We started sharing our journey because we believe that understanding grows when people have the opportunity to learn from real experiences.
Autism awareness is important, but awareness alone does not always explain what everyday life looks like for a family or what meaningful inclusion requires. We want to help bridge that gap.
We want people to understand why patience matters, why communication can take different forms, why sensory experiences should be taken seriously, and why families need understanding rather than assumptions.
There are challenges. There are uncertainties. But there is also a great deal to learn from listening, adapting, and recognising the value of every individual.
We also want to share the realities that are not always easy to explain. There are moments when the world does not seem designed for people with substantial support needs.
Our aim is not to present one family's journey as the experience of every autistic person. It is to offer our perspective as an invitation to learn more.
Our advocacy
Looking towards the future
As our son approaches adulthood, our family is beginning to think more deeply about the next chapter. Growing up brings new questions about participation, support, opportunities, and what life beyond childhood might look like.
For young people with profound autism and substantial support needs, these questions deserve particular attention.
One area we feel particularly passionate about is workplace experience. We believe businesses have an opportunity to learn more about autism and consider how suitable, supported experiences might help autistic young people become familiar with different environments, routines, and activities.
For some individuals, such experiences may contribute to future employment pathways. For others, meaningful participation and experiencing a new environment may be valuable in their own right.
We do not have every answer today. But we believe asking the questions is an important place to begin.
What we want to do
Our mission
Through This Little Light Of Mine, we want to:
Shine a light on autism
Share our lived experience and help people better understand the realities of profound autism and differing support needs.
Inform with understanding
Make useful information accessible to families, educators, and the wider community.
Connect and support
Encourage conversations that help families feel understood and make useful resources easier to discover.
Advocate for inclusion
Encourage communities and businesses to look beyond assumptions and explore meaningful opportunities for autistic people.
We believe that greater understanding can change the way people respond, the opportunities they consider, and the communities they help create.
Every journey matters
Our son's journey continues to shape our understanding of the world. It reminds us that people communicate differently, that support needs can vary enormously, and that inclusion requires us to be willing to adapt rather than expect everyone to fit the same mould.
We share our story in the hope that it will help others see autism differently, encourage families to know they are not alone, and inspire more people to become part of a more understanding and inclusive world.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about our journey.
Where to next
Continue exploring
Explore information about autism, communication differences, sensory experiences, and ADHD.
Together, we can shine a light on autism.
And open doors to understanding, acceptance, and opportunity.