Autism affects everyone in the family. Perhaps no one feels this effect more than the siblings of the ASD child. Parents of the child on the spectrum are often so wrapped up in the issues surrounding autism, and understandably so, that they overlook the ways autism is affecting their other children. It isn't bad parenting; it is human nature. Raising children is a balancing act for parents as they try to meet everyone's needs and provide a complete childhood for each of their children.