The Creative Caregiver & Auggie - Service Dog

For our family, our ZIP code has always played a huge role in what autism support is actually available to our son.

Over the last nine years, we’ve lived in three small Minnesota towns, and we’ve repeatedly run into the same challenge: finding the right services without having to drive 45 minutes or more each way.

And that extra drive matters.

Because for our son, it’s not just attending the appointment, therapy, or service. It’s also managing the transition, the car ride, the unfamiliar environment, and then the drive home afterward.

Virtual therapy isn’t a realistic alternative for him either. Trust me, we’ve tried.

And I know we aren’t the only family in this position.

When you live in a rural area, sometimes the service technically exists, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s accessible.

So families are left trying to fill the gaps.

That’s one of the places Auggie has become such an important part of our lives.

He does not replace therapy.
He does not replace professional support.
He isn’t a substitute for the services our son deserves access to.

But he is a major tool in our toolbox.

He is there in the everyday moments between appointments, during transitions, out in the community, at school, at home, and during the stretches of time when the support we need simply isn’t close enough to reach.

For our family, navigating autism in a rural community has required a lot of creativity, advocacy, and figuring things out as we go.

Auggie has become one more piece of that support system, and a pretty important one. 🐾