Life with Aspergers

No, this post isn't a rant - at least, I hope it isn't. Like most of my posts, it's simply designed to raise awareness. In this case, I'm kicking off a series about the sorts of negative comments that parents of children with special needs face. Being the parent of one or more special needs children is a difficult and often thankless job. Other parents, get praise, excitement and love from their kids - and so do we - but sometimes our kids don't react quite the way we expect. Sometimes they seem less grateful for expensive gifts, less receptive of our hugs and less expressive of positive feelings for us. It's tough for our kids but it's also tough on us as parents. Sometimes we feel burned by the whole experience - and we don't need someone else to come along and tell us what we're doing wrong - or how much better their child is than ours. It's a sad fact that sometimes special needs parents express a sort of "evil glee" when they ...

This was meant to be a companion post to " the drug bandwagon " but I've been so sidetracked lately that it's slipped a little. I've talked quite extensively about Ritalin in the past but I was answering some questions for someone recently and I figured that the information was worth sharing - even if it covers some old ground... Disclaimer As per usual, when I do a drug-style post, I just want to start with a quick disclaimer. I'm not a doctor, so any advice I give should be treated as lay-person's advice which should be checked by a professional. The Question The question I was asked was about Metadate CD however Metadate CD is just another name for "day-strength Ritalin" - as is Concerta. Ritalin and Concerta are brand names while Metadate CD is the generic (cheaper version). Everything you read about Ritalin and Concerta holds true for Metadate CD. (but of course, not everything you read online is true). The Horror Stories about Ritalin... I...

Just drawing your attention to an article of mine which has appeared on the SOS Research Blog ; A Door to Advocacy and Leadership for Asperger's and a Special Kind of Fame Thanks to Danette M. Schott for providing me with this opportunity. Unfortunately this article is no longer available on the SOS Research site, I have reposted it here. http://life-with-aspergers.blogspot.com.au/2015/02/a-door-to-advocacy-and-leadership-for.html

I've been meaning to talk about this for a while but things have just gotten away from me. Karen Krejcha, who blogs at Aspirations ( http://www.aspierations.blogspot.com/ ) has written a fascinating couple of articles called; Soothing and Self Stimming Behaviours in our Family Part 1 Part 2 These articles are both incredibly well thought out and cover a whole range of stimming with plenty of real-life examples. They are well worth a read.

Before we begin, I'll just point out that this is a guest post - in fact, it's my first ever guest post on this blog - so I haven't actually read this book myself - YET! Please welcome Danette... Danette M. Schott is founder of S-O-S Research and blogs at Help! S-O-S for Parents . She is the mother of two children adopted from Russia and personal need has required her to research a variety of special needs issues. The following book review and interview is reprinted with permission. People with Asperger's (AS) and high functioning autism (HFA) are all around us, whether you are aware of this or not. She may be the person who appears to lack a sense of humor, is overly anxious, or seems emotionally detached. Or he may be the person who only talks about cars, appears to be very logical, or doesn't hold eye contact. But people with AS and HFA also have strengths and gifts that Rudy Simone spells out in her first chapter in " Asperger's on the Job ."...

Introduction Ok, this is probably going to be a controversial post so I'll get a few things out of the way before I begin. Just a reminder that I am not a doctor - no medical advice from me should ever be taken seriously - go see a professional before you take any medication. My stance on medication: I'm not anti-medication but I am anti-harm. It's my belief that the only reason a child should be on medication is if it is doing them more good than harm. As I write this, my youngest child has just been diagnosed with ... well, nothing in particular. Our pediatric psychologist surprised us by simply saying that since it was obvious that he had emotional issues, he should go on Risperdal . I'll admit to being quite stunned. I had expected a recommendation of behavioural therapy of some kind - not a drug-based "quick fix". I'd heard some horror stories about the drug but then, being a balanced person, I knew that every drug, particularly those used in chil...

I'm often asked to contribute ideas and concepts to assist others in writing situations involving people with Asperger's and other ASDs. I find these questions quite interesting because they get me to look into areas of my past which I've "moved-on" from. Sometimes looking at these situations with fresh eyes helps me to understand myself better and quite often it makes me cringe. Often, as is the case here, it highlights things that I just haven't covered properly on the blog. The question I was asked this time was about how an autistic person would prepare for a first date in terms of clothes and gift shopping. The presumption is that we're talking about a male on a first date. Is it a date? For a start, it's quite probable that the person wouldn't know whether it was a date or just "going out". I know that in society, these terms are often interchangeable but to a person on the spectrum who is very word-specific, they might not be. I ca...