Single dad, 35, quits rat race to spend quality time with autistic son, 10, travelling around Australia in caravan – The Sun

A DAD who was suffering under the weight of balancing his stressful corporate job with raising his special needs son took to the road and never looked back.

Cameron Dublin, 35, was undergoing councilling that was paid for by his work to help him stay on top of his job and immense family commitments.

Instead it just made him realise that he hated the pursuit of money and how much he just wanted to spend his time with his 10-year-old son Jaiden instead.

He told FEMAIL: "Life was like groundhog day. Raising a child with autism as a solo parent, working a high-stress job and travelling 2.5 hours every day meant I was a stressed-out mess."

Fed up of living on a concoction of caffeine, nicotine and alcohol "to get me up and keep me going all day" and only getting 5 minutes with his son.

ONLY 5 MINUTES A DAY TOGETHER

Sick of only getting a moment together when they were both up at 4.45am to start the day, Cameron decided he was done with his nine to five role as a corporate IT techy.

When Jaiden was three his father quit, sold all of their worldly possessions and bought a caravan.

He said: "Unlike many other traveling families who claim to do it 'on a budget' I didn't have $150,000 (£79,245) to spend on a car and caravan and instead did it for less than $20,000 (£10,566)" he said.

"This included the car and modifications, the caravan, solar power and everything else I needed to live comfortably."

The pair, who are currently in Queensland, spent 18 months on the road together but it wasn't the typical Instagram friendly 'van life' experience.

Instead, the focus was on pushing Jaiden out of his comfort zone and overcoming many of his social, emotional, sensory and communication difficulties.

The Dubin duo moved into a rural property in Blackbutt, Queensland, after their year-and-a-half escapades in preparation for school but they found that Jaiden was actually thriving on a diet of homeschooling and outdoor adventures.

Cameron said: "After three years we started to talk about travel again. We both decided we enjoyed the lifestyle so we once again sold everything, bought a caravan and off we went"

"We have not done 'the lap' of Australia's coastline. For us travel is about strengthening our bond, helping Jaiden overcome his struggles, immersing ourselves in nature and connecting with people along the way."

Some days the pair will sit around and play board games, watch documentaries or play Lego and others they will be bushwalking, riding bikes and swimming.

"We live cheaply, travel slowly, free camp most of the time, we do house sitting and limit the amount of paid attractions we do and instead focus on the free and cheap things."

"Once you remove your rent or mortgage, car payments, the fancy 'stuff' you're paying off, the electricity bill, house and contents insurance, child care fees and public transport costs, you don't actually need that much money to survive."

'UNSCHOOLING'

By way of earning money, Cameron writes as a freelancer on the topics of travel and parenting, has done some solar work, virtual assistant work and campground/caravan park maintenance.

He also receives the Australian family equivalent Universal Credit and a carers payment for being the sole carer for Jaiden, who is now 10.

Jaiden is still learning on the road in a form of education Cameron refers to as "unschooling", and they are registered with the Home Education Unit in Queensland.

Cameron explained: "The idea behind unschooling is instead of using a predefined curriculum, I use Jaiden's interests, questions and everyday life as a means of facilitating a developmentally appropriate and holistic education." he said.

"Instead of worksheets to learn something like fractions, we cover it in cooking. Rather than books to learn about angles, we cover that when skateboarding. Instead of giving him writing tasks he chooses to write blog posts for our Facebook page and blog."

TRY NEW THINGS

The family actively seek out homeschooling groups to engage with on their travels so they never feel isolated from the community they're living in.

They are currently house sitting in Capella, Queensland, with no desire to return to their old lives.

Above strengthening their bond as father and son, the biggest reason to continue has been how seamlessly Jaiden has progressed.

"Many people with kids on the autism spectrum keep them inside a box of comfort, never encouraging them to try new things, push their own boundaries or conquer their fears" Cameron said.

"I have done the exact opposite with Jaiden. He has overcome his fear of the ocean and learned to surf. He has rock climbed 30+ metre cliffs in the Blue Mountains, been drifting in race cars, progressed from hating all animals to leading and riding an 800kg Clydesdale.

"All of this has happened because I have actively encouraged him to push his own limits.

"He has learned to navigate social interactions and deal with the sensory overload that accompanies noisy places and his ability to regulate his own emotions has seen his violent outbursts disappear."

Ultimately Cameron wants to open a special needs friendly campground that can be used as a form of therapy, so other people can experience some of what Cameron and Jaiden have come to know over the past seven years.

You can follow the father and son team at Cam and Jaiden's Excellent Adventure.

Source: Read Full Article