In Alberta, 18 year-olds have the right to:
If your child has a developmental disability and is not able to make their own personal and financial decisions, or if your child would like you to keep supporting them after they turn 18, check out the adult guardianship & trusteeship options on our Making Your Own Decisions page.
Although your child is legally an adult when they turn 18, they may not always make responsible decisions. It is important to remember that the brain continues to develop until about age 24. The last part of the brain to mature is the frontal lobe—the part of the brain that helps make decisions.
Along with these videos about how the teenage brain develops, there are some great books on this topic. To learn more, check out the Youth in Transition Info Rx.
It is not easy parenting a child with an ongoing health condition or disability; it can change a parent or caregiver’s goals for behaviour and independence.
For those who have children with disabilities, it is important for you to work with them to help them become as independent as possible. They may need more support to live, work, travel, or go to school or a day program without you. Do not underestimate the possibilities.
“So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” (Christopher Reeve)
This 1-hour video has great information about Parenting in the Face of Chronic Illness .
This video shows four different Parenting Styles & Effect on Adolescents .
