Ben Haack is a renaissance man. He’s a Special Olympics Athlete Leader from Australia (including several board assignments), a football (soccer) player and now, he’s added the title of “author” to his list of accomplishments. His book, Reason for Hope: A Parent’s Playbook for Raising Happy and Resilient Kids: Hard Won Lessons from My Life on The Autism Spectrum, published by Belonging Forum, was released on 2 April 2026.
Ben recently shared his motivation behind writing the book and his journey growing up with autism.
Why did you write Reason for Hope?
I wrote the book because I want families to have a sense of hope and a sense of feeling like their child has value and can contribute and have meaning both in their life and in their society. Families too often must still deal with a cruel and indifferent world despite all the talk about inclusion. I feel my book does this in an authentic way.
Who is the book for?
It is primarily for families looking to raise a child with autism or a disability. But is also has universal message for any family out there looking to raise children and it can provide real inspiration to people including people with disabilities.
What does it mean to have this book published?
It means that there is a book out there for families trying to raise someone like me with an authentic story with good lessons and advice coming from someone with lived experience of autism. I hope it can help them develop resilience, that can help shape and raise someone with good values, a good sense of who they are, and a perception of being someone of value who can go onto have a good life, with meaning both within themselves and their community.
What was the hardest part about growing up on the autism spectrum and how did you get through it?
The hardest part was not knowing how to understand the world around me and not having any guidance on how to learn to understand it, to not only understand myself but also everybody else. I always felt disconnected when I was at school or in social settings and I did not know how to really deal with that. But as you will read in my book, my family was such an important thing for me. I feel truly blessed to have such good people in my life and later to also find good people at Gold Coast Rec and Sport and Special Olympics.
What did you wish your parents had known when you were a child?
A few things. Firstly, I was seen as more than a diagnosis and as someone positive and inspiring who provided hope and reality but also gave them more of a sense of purpose.They already had this, but they just needed to be guided by other sources. Also, it would have been good if my school and other places had that knowledge as well, so they could have helped and supported me better.
How has your diagnosis shaped who you are today?
For me, it has been all of what I have experienced that has shaped me - the challenges, successes, my family and my coaches. Fundamentally what I have learnt over time is that having a different brain is not a bad thing. It is a good thing and for me it is the foundation of the work that I do in the community to support and empower people like me to try to make it a better place.
What is the single most important piece of advice you’d give to a parent who has just received their child’s autism diagnosis?
Firstly, I know it seems terrible and frightening, and it feels like the hopes you had of raising someone who can contribute and has things to offer and value is gone, but it isn’t.Unfortunately, this is the narrative that society still has about your child, which is not accurate. But tackling this is the first step.
For sure there will be challenges because your child is different and they will see, feel and interpret the world differently. But the key is to understand that there are other parents like you and other children like your child and the best thing to do is to find these people and other groups. But also, my book is there to help people learn the lessons from it which are about family, nature, focusing on basics, and developing a resilient family that values yourself and your child for who they are based on their humanity.Realise that it is an up and down process but have faith that you can do this.I promise you that if you do, you will discover things about yourself and your child that are beautiful.Success is possible. It may be a different version to what the conventional narrative says, but it will still be success.
