About Me

Hannah Townsley

Blog Creator

Hello, and welcome to Curly Autism Mom Blog. My name is Hannah Townsley, and I am an autism mom. I created this blog to raise awareness and provide a one-stop resource for autism parents like me. Navigating autism can be overwhelming. There’s so much information to process—and sometimes, we don’t know where to look, who to see, what services we need, or what to do next. My goal is to make that process a little easier by putting helpful, resourceful information all in one place.

A little about me: I honestly barely knew what autism was. I had heard the word years ago, but I wasn’t knowledgeable about it. When my son was around 2 going on 3, his pediatrician began asking questions about his development. He wasn’t talking much, was still in diapers, struggled to hold a cup without dropping it, and preferred eating with his hands instead of utensils. When I shared this with his pediatrician, she told me he was autistic and gave me a number to call for the next steps. I shrugged it off because I didn’t understand what autism meant. Months later, she asked if I had contacted the number, and I still hadn’t. It wasn’t until several family members encouraged me to get my son evaluated that I finally listened. At age 3, he was diagnosed with autism.

I was scared and had no idea what to expect. I quickly learned that being an autism parent comes with appointments, evaluations, therapies, school concerns, and so much more. Balancing all of that with a 9-to-5 job became extremely difficult. Eventually, I made the decision to leave my job and become a full-time caregiver for my son. He had eloping and behavioral challenges, and I knew I needed to be there for him. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, and I believe the time and effort I put into advocating for him helped him progress. Now, I want to give other autism parents the information and encouragement I wish I had when I first started this journey.

But I’m also going to give you some tough love: you have to advocate for your child. You have to do your due diligence. You know your child better than anyone else, and no one will fight for your child the way you can. I know it’s hard. I know it can feel overwhelming. But nothing changes if we don’t take action. I’m not an expert—I’m simply an autism parent sharing what I’ve learned, what has helped me, and resources that may help you. Sometimes, seeing another parent’s experience can help us get out of our own way and realize we’re not alone. My hope is that this blog can make your journey a little less overwhelming and remind you that you don’t have to navigate it alone.

Check out the rest of the blog site and feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

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