Welcome to My Life

When Skyler was three years old, he was diagnosed with severe, non-verbal autism.

When he was seventeen, his mom wrote a book about his amazing life. Even though he has no words, he has so much to say, and Laurie is honored to help him share it.

Welcome to My Life is an educational memoir about a family’s unconditional love and fierce advocacy for a child with autism, and demonstrates how these traits are, sadly, of absolute importance when navigating a medical system not yet fully aware of the special needs of these special children. I am honored to have met Skyler and his remarkable family. With this book, you will meet them too.” -Arthur Krigsman, MD, Pediatric Gastroenterologist — Clinician, Researcher, Author

I believe we each have a warrior inside of us, and it doesn’t take much to rile up that fighting spirit of a mamma bear—especially when it involves her children.

We all deserve a voice, even the voiceless.

Laurie found her voice early, and she has never stopped using it to stand up for her son with severe, non-verbal autism. In fact, she’s made it her life’s mission to not just use her voice on his behalf but through her book, Welcome to My LIfe: A Personal Parenting Journey Through Autism, her hope is to give a voice to the community of caregivers and loved ones who courageously embrace raising a child who relies on parental assistance for every need throughout their whole life.

Living on little sleep, unexpected daily challenges and a world that doesn’t always seek to understand difference, Laurie opens up her life and welcomes readers into the mundane and the monotonous… the challenges and the triumphs… the heart-aches and the blessings. She’s candid and vulnerable in sharing her mishaps and family’s learnings, with the goal of shedding light on how families and caregivers navigate daily life with a special needs child.

There’s nothing easy about it. But through the hardship, she’s learned much about Skyler’s love for life and how she is beautifully made to be his mamma warrior!

Welcome to My Life invites you to take a journey with Laurie and her son and explore

How Skyler’s autism diagnosis shook and then restored Laurie’s faith

The realities of navigating divorce, co-parenting and new love when your child has special needs

The emotional and physical toll (on Skyler and his family) of countless medical and behavioral treatments

The difference between hope, false hope, acceptance and gratitude in the face of disappointment, uncertainty and fear

The effects of autism on sibling relationships

How autism can challenge and strengthen a marriage

Why laughter is good medicine for us all

Go Beyond the Book