I am an Adult With Autism. I Built a Team to Help Me Make Decisions

by Jonathan Gardner with Sarah Boonin

I am a 21-year-old home school graduate and cancer survivor who happens to have autism. A lot of people like me have a guardian — but I don’t. A guardian is someone like a family member, friend or professional appointed by the court to make decisions about another person’s health, safety and self-care when the court decides that person can’t make their own decisions. Instead of a guardian, I use a tool called supported decision-making or SDM.

When I was 16, the public school system told my mother and me that I would need full guardianship once I turned 18. In that case, my legal guardian would have the final say in all major decisions about my life, including where I would live and what services I would receive, along with all of my financial and medical decisions — likely for the rest of my life. This didn't feel right. I had always been involved in making my own decisions, and it didn’t make sense to take that away from me once I became an adult. Luckily, my mom knew a little about SDM, so we decided to try that instead.

SDM is an alternative to guardianship where a person like me, a “decision-maker,” picks a group of people they trust to help them make their own decisions. SDM enables me to be the CEO of my own life — just like most other people. I have used SDM my entire adult life, including in my fight against cancer. I would not be the person I am today without SDM.

I started by choosing the people I trust most to be my “supporters.” I then chose which supporters would help me with which types of decisions, and how I wanted each of them to help. My supporters include my mom, dad, brother, my mentor, friends, a therapist and others. I entered into an agreement with my supporters, and my plan has evolved as I’ve gotten older. My supporters provide different types of advice and assistance to me so I can live my best life. Thanks to SDM, I am the one in control of my life, not a judge or guardian.

Full Article and Source:
I am an Adult with Autism. I Built a Team to Help Me Make Decisions

North Carolina: Rethinking Guardianship - Carol Kelly

Carol Kelly shares the story of her mother, Mary Jane Mann, who was the victim of an inappropriate, predatory guardianship (conservatorship) in California. Features scenes from "A Hijacked Life," courtesy of KOVR CBS13 Sacramento.

Rethinking Guardianship's mission is to promote less restrictive alternatives to guardianship and effect long-term changes in North Carolina's guardianship system. To learn more, visit: https://rethinkingguardianshipnc.org/

Source:
Rethinking Guardianship: Carol Kelly

North Carolina Rethinking Guardianship - Janie and Suvya

Janie Desmond and Suvya Carroll discuss how they use supported decision-making in their lives as young adults living with intellectual/developmental disabilities.

Rethinking Guardianship's mission is to promote less restrictive alternatives to guardianship and effect long-term changes in North Carolina's guardianship system. To learn more, visit: https://rethinkingguardianshipnc.org/

Source:
Rethinking Guardianship - Janie and Suvya

North Carolina: Rethinking Guardianship - Bill and Deborah

Bill Donohue and Deborah Woolard share the story of their choice to not seek guardianship for their son, Jeremy Woolard Donahue, who has Down Syndrome.

Source:
Rethinking Guardianship: Bill and Deborah

"I DECIDE FLORIDA" - Supporting Supported Decision-Making Bills in Florida

WE BELIEVE People with disabilities deserve to decide where they live, who they love, who their friends are, and what kind of life they want.

A Supported Decision-Making Law will let people with disabilities choose, and keeps loved ones involved.

People with disabilities deserve more options to get the help they need with making decisions and carrying out tasks.

When people with disabilities need support with decisions like choosing where to live or deciding how to spend their money, there are few options. This leads to overuse of guardianship and guardian advocacy, two laws that allow a person's rights to be taken away and given to someone else to exercise for them.

Website Source:
I Decide Florida website

See Also:
READ Senate Bill 1772
READ House Bill 1207