My ASD Child

The two most important issues to address with ASD (high functioning autistic) teens are sexual safety and social issues related to sexuality. It comes down to education directed to personal and sexual safety - starting with closing and locking the bathroom door, knowing who can and can't help with menstrual care, and understanding the difference between good touching and bad touching. Very few programs exist to teach young people with ASD about sex and sexuality, and because ASD teens are often unaware of social cues and peer expectations, clear, direct education is often critical. For example, they need to know they should lock the bathroom stall, and they need to learn how to do it. Sometimes moms and dads think it's safer if they take their youngster into the bathroom with them, but the challenge with that is that the person most likely to cause abuse is someone the kid knows, not someone he/she doesn't know. And if you don't teach your son/daughter to close...

It used to be thought that individuals with Aspergers did not marry because of their social difficulties. This is not true! There may be many undiagnosed people with Aspergers who have spouses and kids. Some may manage marriage and family life very well, others may have great difficulties. Living with an individual with Aspergers can be very difficult because of the very subtle nature of the disability. There is no physical sign of the disorder, and it can be hard to explain to friends and family that the peculiar behavior is not deliberate. What Spouses Say— The following are direct quotes taken from case histories written by spouses of individuals with Aspergers: • "Anything he cannot face he throws away, and the consequences are -horrific... He keeps copious lists of 'things to do, but I have to tell him what they are. If I am not there, he loses the lists... His social behavior is appalling; falls asleep in company, makes rude noises." • "All ...

How should you handle meltdowns in your Aspergers (high functioning autistic) child? With an Aspergers child, a certain situation is fraught with frustration, and potential anger. For example, the stress and strain of school days – which are so long and arduous – are like a compressed spring. It's compressed, and compressed, and compressed, and when they get home, there's an explosion (the Jeckyl and Hyde moment). After school, it may be a time for going for a run or a walk, watching TV, etc., to get it out of their system, to debrief or to get rid of that tension. There are ways that moms and dads may pick up the signs that a meltdown is brewing (e.g., rigid thinking, being intolerant of imperfection, holding his head). Often times, there are warning signs that the Aspergers child is starting to get agitated. So, the circumstances and warning signs may be a clue. Sometimes the meltdown comes out of the blue when you have no expectation that it's going to occu...

In the home-school environment, routine can be maintained because there is not the impact of the needs of other kids or other interruptions . Further, you have the ability to teach to your youngster's strengths that may not be readily recognized by others within the school system. As I am sure you know, it is often not the individual teachers that are at fault – but overcrowded and under-funded schools are often the bigger problem. It may also help your youngster avoid the effects of bullying that is often associated with any youngster who is different. A great deal of research indicates the problems of bullying in Aspergers (high-functioning autistic) kids can be very significant and of course very damaging. The youngster with Aspergers lacks social skills and the ability to fit in with their peers, yet they usually crave this type of interaction. So this can be a very problematic area for a youngster with Aspergers. All kids learn a great deal of their social sk...

Aspergers (AS) may lead to problems in social interaction with peers. These problems can be severe or mild depending on the individual. Kids with AS (also called high functioning autism) are often the target of bullying at school due to their idiosyncratic behavior, precise language, unusual interests, and impaired ability to perceive and respond in socially expected ways to nonverbal cues, particularly in interpersonal conflict. Kids with AS may be overly literal, and may have difficulty interpreting and responding to sarcasm, banter, or metaphorical speech. Difficulties with social interaction may also be manifest in a lack of play with other kids. The above problems can even arise in the family; given an unfavorable family environment, the youngster may be subject to emotional abuse. A youngster or adolescent with AS is often puzzled by this mistreatment, unaware of what has been done incorrectly. Unlike other pervasive development disorders, most kids with AS want to be...

The mysterious nature of Aspergers (high functioning autism) has led to a number of misconceptions about this syndrome as well as the individuals who have it. Overall, it has been a very misunderstood disorder, especially when it comes to distinguishing it from lower levels of autism.  A lot of people talk about Aspergers and compare it to autism. But this is not completely accurate. Those with Aspergers are not as impaired as a person with autism. Because of this, they are able to go to college, balance a checkbook, drive a car and function pretty normally. In many cases, it's just somebody who's socially awkward. Even this awkwardness can be misconstrued as "acting out". One misconception is that they are intentionally acting weird for attention, which is not the case. A lot of attributions are made about their behaviors that are negative, because people just don't understand. Just as there are many misconceptions about those who actually have Aspe...

Also known as “autism lite” or a “shadow syndrome” of autism, Aspergers is an autistic spectrum disorder that affects approximately 1 out of every 200 people. Those with Aspergers are high functioning in the sense that they are better able to maintain social relationships than those with autism. Unlike those with autism, people with Aspergers often score highly on measures of verbal intelligence. When contemplating disorders such as Aspergers, there is a tendency to focus on negative aspects. But many of those with Aspergers have positive traits as well, which has led some people to question whether it should be viewed as a difference rather than a disorder . Here are the positives associated with the Aspergers condition.  People with Aspergers: are excited about the world around them with a zest and hunger for learning are fascinated by facts and dates are frequent victims of social weaknesses of others, while steadfast in the belief of the possibility of genuin...