Beyond just coping

Counselor-coach offers hope for the future to families affected by autism

By Jim Hart

The Sandy Post, Oct 13, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

Local woman has written a book that gives hope to families affected by autism

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Ruth Knott-Schroeder likes the small-town feel of East Multnomah County. She lives outside the urban area in east Gresham and sees some of her clients in her Sandy office.

The rest of her clients could be in another state or another country. It matters not to the professional counselor and coach for living. She can coach over the phone or in people’s homes. She also travels to speak at workshops and trains other coaches.

Because she has an 18-year-old son affected with autism, she has had to become an expert on that topic. And the first thing she learned was that autism affects an entire community.

A recent survey shows an increasing prevalence of the disorder – now about 11 in 1,000 children. Knott-Schroeder says everyone near a child with autism needs to understand what to expect and how to react. That group includes not just parents but siblings, other family members, neighbors and the wide circle of friends and schoolmates who are near the affected child.

With the education she has had, plus the practical knowledge gained at home while parenting an affected child, Knott-Schroeder has enough experience and knowledge to advise other parents and family members just beginning to live with the disorder.

Knott-Schroeder has capsulated the knowledge she gained from the “school of hard knocks” and placed it in a book, published by a London publishing company and available anywhere in the world through Amazon or directly from Knott-Schroeder.

The book is a guide for living with a child affected by any of five disorders in the spectrum of autism syndrome. She said its theme is learning more than just how to cope with this disorder, but also having hope for the future. That’s why she named her Web site “Cope to Hope.”

The book has sections on parenting a child with autism, parenting a sibling who does not have autism, parent care and long-term health of parents. She even describes how different the relationships are for mothers and fathers who have a child with autism.

Knott-Schroeder knows exactly what is happening in autism-affected households, and she can advise or model the best practices that will help children have good experiences in life.

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