Life with Aspergers

Aspertools: The Practical Guide for Understanding and Embracing Asperger’s, Autism Spectrum Disorders and Ñeurodiversity by Harold Reitman M.D. with Pati Fizzano and Rebecca Reitman 2017 Souvenir Press Ltd  Aspertools is an unusual book, coming out, proudly displaying references to Asperger’s Syndrome in a post-DSM V world.  That's right; Asperger’s is no longer recognised in its own right but is folded into the general autism spectrum. Aspertools takes a very different approach.  It's not necessarily a book directed at people with Asperger’s or even those on the general autism spectrum. This is a book that aims at the neurodiverse; the people who different somehow.  Those whose differences have neurological reasons. It's a great premise and Harold makes it clear from the outset that not all chapters will apply to all people. Just read the book and use what you learn from the chapters that do while ignoring those that don't. As his daughter,  Rebecca...

Joel Suzuki Volume 3: Legend of the Loudstone  by Brian Tashima In recent years, it has become more common to add characters with autism to mainstream stories. It's partially about inclusion but it's also the fact that people on the spectrum tend to make more interesting characters. The Spectraland saga is a young adult series that has been based, from the very beginning, around two characters; Joel and Felicity both of whom are on the autism spectrum. Spectraland is about two young adults from Earth who find themselves in a fantasy world where their music translates to magic. You can read my reviews of books one and two here. If you haven't read the first two books, in the series, you really need to read them first. The third book in the series moves away from Spectraland to an adjoining region, the "mono realm" where conformity is a way of life and a rebellion is brewing. It's interesting to note that while the first two books in the series fe...

Not all people with Asperger's syndrome are introverted, in fact there are many flamboyant and loud people with Asperger's (and that category deserves a post of its own). I'd venture to say though, that most of the people I've met with Asperger's have tended to be the shy, quiet type. Of course, that might just be me as being shy and quiet myself.  After all, I'm far more likely to be open in discussions with introverted individuals.  There's nothing wrong with Introversion  In western society, it often feels as if introversion is a problem that needs to be “cured” but it's not. Introverts, particularly those with Asperger's, are often perfectly capable of “acting” extroverted when a situation calls for it. It's important to remember though that it's just an act and it takes a lot of effort to maintain. We often find ourselves feeling more stressed and grumpier after having had to act that way for a while. Being introverted or e...

The month of April is “Light it up blue for autism” month. It's the month where we we embrace exciting concepts like autism “awareness” (ah, so that's the word we use to describe “these people”) and autism “acceptance”, (ok, so I guess we can't stone them to death anymore**). ** That's a joke by the way.  They might have been started with the best of intentions but I'm really not sure that they help as much as they'd like us to think. In fact, it's just possible that they do more harm than good. It's not Just Autism  There are a lot of charities around which gear up on certain months. In particular, there are the yellow cancer charities and the pink breast cancer ones. The various charities collect funds from the sale of ribbons, bears, chocolates and other goodies. The more established of these charities also partner with grocery stores and manufacturers to produce specific items, such as bread in marked packaging, where a certain percentag...

I was recently asked about my diagnosis and about the whole genetic link in Asperger's Syndrome. I thought I'd already answered this somewhere on the blog but when I didn't find it, I figured that it was something that I should clarify.  Yes, I do have Asperger's syndrome. I also have a son, currently aged 16 with Asperger's and NVLD and ADHD(I). I have a second son with HFA but since he's very verbal, even more son than his older brother, it's clearly Asperger's now... or would be if the diagnosis of Asperger's still existed.  You can find out more about my family and I on the " About page " and you can find out more about me specifically via my four part introduction. See here for Parts  One ,  Two ,  Three  and  Four . Part four in particular talks about diagnosis. "This Book is About You" In a nutshell though, my eldest child was diagnosed at 5. His differences were picked up by his teachers who met with us severa...

Asperger's Are Us (2016) Running Time: 82 minutes Directed by Alex Lehman Starring: Noah Britton, Ethan Finlan, Jack Hanke, New Michael Ingemi Asperger's Are Us is an independent documentary about the "last show" of a comedy troupe comprised of four individuals with Asperger's syndrome.  When the documentary starts, the group have already been performing together for a few years and as they've all reached College age and are about to go their separate ways, they decide to put on one final show. It's quite a well put-together documentary which at times feels so "mocumentary" that it's a little like "the office". It features interviews with the boys themselves as well as with their parents.  While the popular consensus is that comedy doesn't come easy to people with Asperger's Syndrome, I'm of the opinion that Asperger's humour doesn't come easy to neurotypical people. There's a lot of very funny b...

One of the more bizarre questions on the Asperger's diagnostic forms concepts whether the person has an “unusual gait”.  I remember reading that and thinking that I certainly didn't fit the profile in that instance. I think that the first image that popped into my head at that point was John Cleese doing the “Ministry of Silly Walks” sketch. Of course, the reality of the unusual gait is “completely different”. Then and Now It was only later that I remembered that my wife, whom I met at age 14, used to tell everyone to watch out for my “funny running style”; something that clearly amused my schoolmates. Could this be the famed “unusual gait”. Fast forward about 33 years and I find that my work colleagues pick up on my “unusual gait” as I pass them on the street. Clearly there's something really different about how I walk. Not “wrong”, just different. In fact, it's clearly not wrong because I walk more than most people and done random walks of up to 50km...