Skip to main content

Article: Reflections on Being an Aspie Parent

I discovered this post via RSS today. It's probably the best post I've ever read on aspie parenting and it needs to be read.

Reflections on Being an Aspie Parent
http://www.aspergerjourneys.com/2009/03/16/reflections-on-being-an-aspie-parent/

So often, I find people asking on forums whether people with Aspergers should be able to have children. I hear questions about the worthiness of aspie traits in today's society and worst of all, I hear these questions coming from Aspies themselves.

In this particular article, Rachel talks about the strengths that she, as an aspie brings to parenting using real life examples. It's one of the most comprehensive and uplifting articles on Aspergers that I've read in a long time.

Well done Rachel!

Comments

Anonymous said…
Many thanks, Gavin!
Angela said…
Thanks for sharing this, what a great post!
Anonymous said…
Well I shall nip along and take a peek in that case.
Cheers
Anonymous said…
You have made my day. I know I am reading this... "slightly" after the fact, but it just really hit home.

I have the most amazing partner in the world. She is totally accepting of the fact that I'm an aspie, and that sometimes I just can't do those little things. But she also has three kids, and primary custody. So I went from being a single twenty-one year old who had just become a veteran, to practically a step-parent overnight. I have some spectacular failures. (Like the 30-minute smackdown I received from the 7 year old, because I confused her). But I have some utterly amazing attaboys. (Like how she apologized for that on her own, because she understood that she had really hurt me and done something wrong.)
And my girlfriend has actually thanked me on multiple occasions for the traits that make me an aspie. To know that I'm not the only one... Thanks.
Anonymous said…
Great post. G has never taken part in PE as he will not change in to a PE because of bullying and worrying about people seeing him getting changed.

Popular posts from this blog

Aspie Myths - "He Won't Miss Me"

I apologise for the excessive "male-orientated" viewpoint in this post. I tried to keep it neutral but somehow, it just works better when explained from a male viewpoint. Here's a phrase that I've seen repeated throughout the comments on this blog on several occasions; "I know that he won't miss me when I'm gone because he's aspie" Today, we're going to (try to) bust that myth; Individuals I'll start off with a reminder that everyone is an individual. If all aspies were completely alike and predictible, they'd be a stereotype but they're not. Each is shaped by their background, their upbringing, their beliefs and their local customs. An aspie who grew up with loud abusive parents has a reasonable chance of becoming loud and abusive themselves because in some cases, that's all they know. That's how they think adults are supposed to behave. In other cases, aspies who grew up in those circumstances do a complete about-fa

Why Do Aspies Suddenly Back-Off in Relationships? (Part 1)

One of the most frequent questions I'm asked is why an aspie (or suspected aspie) suddenly goes "cold" and backs off on an otherwise good relationship. It's a difficult question and the answers would vary considerably from one person to another and would depend greatly on the circumstances. Nevertheless, I'll try to point out some possibilities. Negative Reasons I generally like to stay positive on this blog and assume that people are not necessarily "evil" but simply misguided. Unfortunately, I do have to acknowledge that there are some people out there who take advantage of others. I read a book a few years ago on "sociopaths in the workplace" and I was stunned by the figures. They suggested that sociopaths were so common that most workplaces (small business) had at least one or two. The fact is that there are lots of people out there who really feel very little for others and who are very manipulative. I'd like to say that aspies aren

Why do Aspies Suddenly Back Off in Relationships (Part 2)

In part one, we looked at the role that Change Resistance plays in causing aspies to suddenly go "cold" in otherwise good relationships. This time, I want to look at self esteem and depression; Self Esteem The aspie relationship with themselves is tedious at best. People with Asperger's commonly suffer from low self esteem. As discussed in earlier posts, this low self esteem often results from years of emotional turmoil resulting from their poor social skills. Aspies are often their own worst enemy. They can over analyze situations and responses in an effort to capture lost nonverbal communication. This often causes them to invent problems and to imagine replies. Everything made up by aspies will tend to be tainted with their own self image. This is one of reasons that people with Asperger's will sometimes decide that they are not good enough for their partner and that they must let them go. Sometimes, the aspie will develop a notion of chivalry or self-sacrific