Idk, downies aren't smart enough to feel sorry for themselves, I actually kinda envy them

Ive volunteered on and off with the special Olympics for years, downies can find enjoyment, happiness and wonder in the smallest things, they're kinda like lil kids in that sense. What's sad is the amount of families that abandon them because of their disabilities. I work primarily with downies from group homes and low income families but there is rarely any family involved. With that being said, it doesn't phase them as far as their overall demeanor goes...ignorance is bliss or whatever

Tbh I dont think they're emotionally intelligent enough to mask their emotions successfully or to compartmentalize them. Kids with loving families and caretakers may long for things like a gf but they dont seem miserable without 1, like I dont think they have the emotional complexity to internally hate themselves and the world like incels. Autists, that's a different story. The low functioning autistic kids I've worked with were always much more difficult because for instance: it's like they're mentally and physically capable to field a baseball they just have to break these mental barriers everytime they do it and when they're not successful they give up easily and they remember that failure. At the same time I've had some great success coaching autistic kids who were scared to play sports and they were able to use thatmlater on to connect with people in their day to day lives. The ones I really feel sorry for are the special needs kids who have no family or a decent caretaker, the ones who live in areas where there's no program like special Olympics, where they're homed with kids fresh out of juvie because the county doesn't have programs to house both separately. Those kids never get any kind od positive stimulation, they're basically treated like criminals and when they get older they act out more and are relegated to worse/higher security housing

No and I'll sue you

I like coaching team sports. I find something rewarding in teaching someone something then seeing other aspects of their game or even life improve because of it. I'm also a firm believer that team sports can help keep a kid out of trouble, build confidence/social skills and can pave a way for an outcast to find his place in a larger group

I've coached high school football, peewee football/baseball/soccer and I've done summer sports camps. I stopped coaching to pursue jobs that paid better but I still volunteer with special Olympics when I can