Our son has Aspergers Syndrome. However, getting the diagnosis didn’t come easy and the path to that diagnosis was rocky to say the least. That was over 10 years ago and still the following checklist we received from our school district is the best heads-up to having Aspergers Syndrome that I’ve seen to date. It cuts to the chase. TheContinue Reading
The summer between high school graduation and the first day of college classes can be both exciting and anxiety-producing. It can be for anyone, really, but it may be especially so for individuals diagnosed with ASD. Challenges with executive functioning and theory of mind may make aspects important to the transition– planning for it, for example, or knowing who toContinue Reading
When our youngest son was no more than 6 years old, we would enter a restaurant or someone’s home and he would throw up. He told us it was a picture or something on the wall that made him so ill. I thought it had to be due to the content of the picture but after years of testing weContinue Reading
It’s understood that bullying will happen to those who have Aspergers Syndrome, especially during the challenging middle school years. Where can you turn? One school counselor discusses your options in this edition of Top of the Spectrum News. School Bullying: Your Legal Rights Guest(s): Richard Behrens Jennifer AllenAfter an extensive career broadcast marketing, Jennifer and her husband searched for answersContinue Reading
Prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) has risen significantly since first described in the 1940s. The Center for Disease Control estimates currently 1 in 68 children in the United States lives with an ASD diagnosis, and that 46% of those diagnosed have average to above average intelligence. A large body of literature describes the significant, life-long difficulties faced by many individualsContinue Reading
Superhero: a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; an exceptionally skillful or successful person – Merriam-Webster Dictionary When the time came for me to have children, there were a lot of options and situations that I knew I needed to be prepared for. Though I have to admit, majority of my thoughts were about choosing nursery bedding and baby names. Would I use clothContinue Reading
In 2013 I surveyed disability service professionals at 578 degree-granting, four-year public institutions of higher education. The survey was designed to determine the current readiness of higher education to support the academic, social and communication, and independent living needs of college students diagnosed with Asperger’s Disorder. 230 colleges participated in the survey. The survey was designed around the Benchmarks of EffectiveContinue Reading
As I mentioned in my previous blog, there are thousands of published research studies to support the effectiveness of ABA in treating autism and Aspergers. Specifically, ABA seeks to decrease challenging behaviors and increase appropriate skills that are seen in many individuals with autism or Aspergers. To help understand what your ABA therapist seeks to accomplish, let’s cover what theseContinue Reading
Meltdowns Guest(s): Herb Allen Situations and triggers that may cause classroom meltdowns and insights into some avoidance techniques are discussed in this Top of the Spectrum News segment. Jennifer AllenAfter an extensive career broadcast marketing, Jennifer and her husband searched for answers when their oldest son hit the kinder years with great difficultly. After finally learning that their oldest sonContinue Reading
Sensory processing disorder is a condition in which the brain has trouble receiving and responding to information that comes in through the senses. Some people with sensory processing disorder are over sensitive to things in their environment. Common sounds may be painful or overwhelming. For young children entering school, they may find the fluorescent lighting, ticking of the clock, polyester inContinue Reading
If you haven’t seen it, here is “Asperger’s High”, a mock drama situated around a fictitious sitcom as seen on youtube. Sam and Jennifer interview its very talented co-writer and actress, Leslie Tsina, below. Tsina talks about the making of the mock drama “Aspergers High” with some behind-the-scene tidbits, reactions from the autism community and her future projects. ContactContinue Reading
Peter Thiel — the PayPal founder, Facebook investor, and bestselling author — hates groupthink. He avoids hiring MBAs, since he says they tend to be “high extrovert/low conviction people,” a combination of traits that “leads towards extremely herd-like thinking and behavior.” Similarly, he says that “people end up behaving more lemming-like” in places like San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood, where tons of tech companies are crammed into aContinue Reading
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