Special Interests

Katie Bridges WarriorsOfTheEdge.com “So, what is your special interest?” If you put two or more people together who have Asperger’s syndrome, the question is bound to come up. Translated, it means, “So, what one single thing have you been focusing on all your life?” Not everyone with Asperger’s syndrome will be able to relate to such a question, but when you take the repetitive nature of this unique group, along with their narrow, restricted interests, and mix that together with an intense curiosity or profound devotion to whatever strikes their fancy, a lifelong interest in one particular subject is often the result. Even more amazing, this special interest typically begins at a very early age.   Without a doubt, my focus has been on all things futuristic. Robots are a big deal for me, along with architectural designs of a futuristic nature. I could sit and stare at a drawing of…

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Help Urban Autism Preschoolers Get a Playground

TPGA friend Leo surveys the bare yard that is the play area for preschoolers with autism at John Muir Elementary School in San Francisco For many kids with autism, playgrounds — no matter how the kids use them, and often despite physical disabilities — are something they can use without needing 1:1 direction and support. The teacher of the autism preschool class at John Muir School in San Francisco says that’s certainly true of her eight students — the problem is, they don’t have a playground. They have a bare patch of asphalt, with circles painted on it. And they are not allowed to play on the gorgeous new elementary playground adjacent to their yard. The class parents have already worked with the class teacher to determine the best, most appropriate, and accessible play options for the autism preschoolers. The problem is, the school doesn’t have the money for the…

Autism Families: Seeking Support Is A Sign Of Family Health

Laura Shumaker www.laurashumaker.com www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/lshumaker/index I was a part time pharmaceutical rep with a one and a half year old at home the first time I got really sick, sicker than I had ever been. I remember walking up a flight of stairs carrying my detail bag full of Advil and The Today Sponge (yes, we are talking 1989) and feeling so weak that I had to sit down until I felt strong enough to go down the stairs in search of a pay phone so I could call my husband. “I think I need to go to the emergency room,” I told him. I was diagnosed with a meningeal infection and was given IV antibiotics. It took me weeks to completely recover. In a follow-up visit, I told my doctor: “This is so strange! I never get sick!” At that visit, I didn’t admit to him that I had been…

Coming Out: Autism in College

Kerry Magro KerryMagro.com Kerry was recently featured in a story that ran in the Orlando Sentinel and the L.A. Times which shared his transition to college life and the skills he gained there as he became a self-advocate. He has since graduated from Seton Hall.                       -The Editors Hello, my name is Kerry Magro and I have autism. I just recently learned about The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism from a truly outstanding individual, Laura Shumaker, who is a remarkable advocate for those of us who are on the spectrum.  Once I looked at the website, and read some of the essays, I knew I was hooked.  Regardless of what I took from the essays, I wanted to help in any way I possibly could. This gave me the idea of posting one of my own personal works about coming out about being on the spectrum. Below you will find…

Listening Therapy

Kim Wombles kwomblescountering.blogspot.com www.science20.com/science_autism_spectrum_disorders Parents are always looking for new treatments to help their children with autism; it can be daunting to keep up with the multitude of new therapies constantly popping up on the internet, many with similar sounding names. There are several different “listening therapies” or auditory integrative training programs available online promising relief for autism symptoms. According to Sinha, Silove, Wheeler, and Williams (2006), “treatments to overcome variations in auditory sensitivity commonly encountered in people with autism have been developed and are collectively called auditory integration therapies. They include auditory integration training (AIT), the Tomatis method and Samonas sound therapy.” Listening (or sound) therapies fall within the category of auditory training programs. Database searches show no results for any scientific investigation on specific programs available online, such the Lollipop Listening Therapy, Tomatis, or EASe, and there is limited research into auditory integration training for reducing autistic behaviors…

Good Cop

Carol Greenburg  aspieadvocate-ascd.blogspot.com   I could have kicked myself for not getting the name of the wonderful New York City police officer who pulled me over the other night. I’m a safe driver for the most part, but Asperger’s sometimes interferes with my perceptions whether I’m standing still or navigating a dark road. It was rainy, I was distracted, and if I can’t even read body language … Well, I was as I so often am, stumped.    Even at my best it’s sometimes unclear to me why people honk their horns at me,  so when the cop driving behind me started waving his hands I didn’t know if  wanted me to get out of his way or whether he was trying to pull me over. Turns out it was the latter. I know this because he used his loudspeaker to announce to all of SoHo that I was to put my car…

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The Color of Skin

Brenda Rothman mamabegood.blogspot.com In our neck of the woods, we talk about race.  We use “black” and “white.” It kinda freaks people out. But we feel having the conversation is important. Much more important than ignoring it. The other day, I was talking about skin color.  See, Jack doesn’t notice people’s skin color. Instead, he looks at foreheads and hair color. It’s just the way his brain is wired. So I find it kinda random, based on our own wiring, that we use race to identify people. I mean, I know that we do. It’s in our history. It’s in our society. But, I’m thinking, my child sees people, not people categorized by skin color. Isn’t that what we want?  If he’s already treating everyone the same, why should I label people based on race? So I asked Denene Millner, founder, editor, author of the website My Brown Baby the…

Autism and Orgasm

Lindsey Nebeker nakedbrainink.com One of my blog readers who is on the autism spectrum brought up a concern regarding recent  bedroom issues. This person is finding that the process of achieving orgasm has become increasingly difficult: “[Since learning more about my ASD diagnosis] I’ve been noticing a growing awareness in what is going on around me and what my body is feeling … and it is becoming sort of distracting during sex, mainly orgasm. As I began to feel my self start to climax I suddenly became very focused on the noises and things in the room such as the fan running, and how the moving air felt on my skin. Then I suddenly became overwhelmed with my body itself, to the point that it took away the orgasm. I focused intensely on how the sheets felt against my skin, how my partner’s skin felt on mine, how my hands…

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Interview: Debra Hosseini of ARTISM: the Art of Autism

Debra Hosseini’s show ARTISM: the Art of Autism is opening at Manhattan’s SoHo Gallery for Digital Art on July 7th. The exhibit opens an incredible doorway into the imaginative worlds of people with autism. Samples from the SoHo Gallery for Digital Art show can be found at artismtoday.com/art-gallery.  TPGA talked with Debra last week about the project’s inspirations, goals, impact — and how wonderfully it represents the range of autism experiences and individuality. Please tell us how ARTISM: The Art of Autism emerged. What was your inspiration? The reason I started curating art shows was because my son Kevin, who is sixteen and on the autism spectrum, is a very active artist. His website is www.kevingallery.com — you can see how prolific he is in creating his art. He has been my primary inspiration and has led me down this path. Artism: The Art of Autism is actually the second…