streamdreams

First le me say that I am an AS adult not diagnosed until 38, I am also married and in full time employment. So it can done, but it was not easy. I believer that it was Sir Douglas Bader who was quoted as saying aim for the clouds and you will clear the trees, aim for the tress and you wont get off the ground�. Canopus and I agree to disagree on the current statistical quotations, The fact it that it is very true that the is very little help for adults and even fewer studies about AS adults. The primary problem is that it is only the worst cases that get a DX in the UK as adults, the rest are left to struggle on their own with no DX and no help In the US AS comes un the heading of PDD (Pervasive Development Disorder), Which is actual a very good way of looking at it. For a lot of us we find we our social and emotional development is behind as much as 10 to 15 years. Trying to hold down a job at 18 would have been too much too soon. But at 22, I could and did do it. I have has several bosses suggest I move on, and in one case even help me do so by giving me time off to attend interview etc. I believe the trick is to harness the strengths of AS. To go with favorite subjects , obsessions etc. To avoid positions that are socially intense. Instead of jumping into employment try to find alternative forms of education, eg vocational training, until he is ready ( See capopus?s post http://www.asd-forum.org.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=4168 ) You have made no mention of his academic achievements, can these be expanded on? Are the some small steps that can help to boost his self esteem and generate the confident to tackle less exciting options. The are several resources by Jessica Kingsley publishers that come to mind http://www.jkp.com/ Employment for Individuals with Asperger Syndrome or Non-Verbal Learning Disability, Stories and Strategies - Yvona Fast How to Find Work that Works for People with Asperger Syndrome - The Ultimate Guide for Getting People with Asperger Syndrome into the Workplace (and keeping them there!) - Gail Hawkins Managing with Asperger Syndrome - Malcolm Johnson Realizing the College Dream with Autism or Asperger Syndrome - A Parent's Guide to Student Success - Ann Palmer There is a new one out tomorrow, which I have on order, in which Tony Attwood discusses some adult issues; Coming Out Asperger - Diagnosis, Disclosure and Self-Confidence - Edited by Dinah Murray Best of luck J

psyco

Yes I feel that is the case. Sad realy I am now an excile from my own country ! Ok things could change but ther is no way i cam bringing my AS kids back at the moment J

i read in Simon's articles that ; Schools free to manage their own admissions would have a "perverse incentive" to exclude children with special educational needs to improve their exam results, Sir Mike Tomlinson, the former chief inspector of schools, warned today. This is curently the case in Holand, however the excluding school, not the parants, though they may help, have the responcibility to find a new suitable place for the child before they can exclude the child. Parent are interviewed two or three times by the recieving school and there is always the right of apeal. Th new school will want to know why and also have a say how suitable the new araggement may or may not be. The new school may chouse not acept the child if they dont want or believe the reason are unsatifactory. for my $.02 we need a country wide bill of educational rights, schools should provide and the governemt should fund acourdingly. By elimiminitat the central bruocracy, stadardising acress leas etc, money may well be saved in the long run dispite the need for aditional SEN funding J

What do you make of the recent education anouncments ? I spoted several thisn that make this interestin but I am not shure how it is likely to pan out for example I saw ; "The White Paper will say councils should act as mediators between schools and families, rather than as providers." But the folowingf looks like good nes; There will also be encouragements for start-up schools from parents' groups, charities, universities, community organisations, faith groups and businesses. And even more encuragin is ; Although less headline-grabbing, but with longer-term significance, have been the repeated suggestions that assessment of education has to be about individual pupils, rather than looking at the performance of institutions. My fear is the intermediate termoil J

You have my sympathy. <'> The best things about My DX, months down the line, is that it prevents arguments. First I can pridict when I am likely to have problems, (so can my wife), I now know to voice my dificultes before and as they arise, but esentualy before they over come me. When when I embaris her she calmly tels me with out it becomingan explosion, because she KNOWS I am inocent. We are winning we have come along way from the night she said "your not human, your autistic" She meant NT J

This is a very dangerouse set of asumptions and one i can not agree with period. As a AS person and the father of two AS boys, I know just how hard it is to get results first hand. A lot of it is to do with self esteem and ther is nothin like not even geting interview This is a very dangerous set of assumptions and wide open to misinturpretation. As AS person and the father of two AS boys, I know just how hard it is to get results, first hand. Yes I do agree with you that there are other ways to achieve results once the conventional ruled have been ruled out an the information you have provided is very useful in that respect. Yes exams can be spread out to reduce pressure, so on and so fourth But I am sorry but this world is Darwinian and employers do look at bits of paper. we need to be careful, employers to not understand all of the �alternatives� and these days rightly or wrongly CV?s are scanned by computer for key words like �degree� before being passed on by agencies. Many employers will never see a CV if it does not have the right buzz words. AS people are constantly being reminded that they are different, being able to achieve has a major positive impact on self esteem. May be I am speaking for my self but, I don?t want my results down graded, I don?t even want a level playing field( see Darwin), I want the tools and skills to do the job. With regard to employment, the are no real figures at the moment about the employment status of AS / HFA people. There is a figure of 6% quoted from time to time but that an old study by the NAS which includes the whole Autistic spectrum both High and Low functioning. Secondly we do not know how many undiagnosed HFA/AS people are out there. Some estimates are as high as 1 in 200 of the general population. If a teacher said that about your child how would you react? I can imagin the post on the forum There is simply no way at the age for 15, 16, 17 that you can make that distinction about some one at that age, and it would be very irresponsible to try. Results come in unpredictable steps. Progress can come much later put label a person and treat them with such an attitudes and self esteem or lack of it therefore will inhibit any form of growth. Lastly, I like the main part of you article, its just he first paragraph that makes me shudder at the core. J

Inspired by the previouse thread what shcool have you got, this should let us see the gap

football started with around 200 people kicking a pigs bladder, 150 year later and they now kick the whole police man! Totaly boring if you ask me, but my wife was goalie in the school team J

The is a new book "Coming Out Asperger: Diagnosis, Disclosure and Self-confidence" dure to be relased on Nov 1 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers that looks very promiceng. Synopsis "Coming Out Asperger" explores the complexity of diagnosis for Asperger Syndrome, the drawbacks and benefits of disclosing a diagnosis of a "hidden disability," and how this impinges on self-esteem. The contributors include some of the best-known and most exciting writers in the field of Asperger Syndrome (AS) today, and include individuals on the autism spectrum, parents and professionals. The broad range of the chapters, which draw on anecdotal, professional and research-based evidence, make this book a comprehensive and highly original consideration of the implications of an AS diagnosis.The ever-difficult question of who to tell and when once a diagnosis has been confirmed is discussed in great depth. Liane Holliday Willey and Stephen Shore examine the dynamics of disclosure, its risks and the possible effect on self-confidence. Jacqui Jackson looks at how a diagnosis impacts upon family life. Tony Attwood provides a clinician's view of diagnosing adults, and Lynne Moxon, Wendy Lawson, Dora Georgiou and Jane Meyerding discuss adult issues surrounding disclosure, including how to deal with relationships and sexuality, and disclosure in the workplace, as well as social and disability issues.A unique and fascinating insight into the important issue of diagnosis disclosure, this book is an essential guide for people with AS, parents, teachers, professionals and all those who have ever felt confused about revealing a personal issue.

This is classic AS distress, what the Americans call melt down. Whilst I am not as Dr. I have been there. The key, as hard as it may seem, is to leave her alone just so long as she is not harming her self or breaking up the place. This level of distress requires help. I don?t know the British system very well, but my bet is the best place to start to get help is with the Doctors that gave her the dx. They need to know about these bad days, especially the physical manifestations i.e. the biting. As you say it?s a good this happened at home, but it might not and other people may be less inclined to accept a �physical assault�. A DX in adults can make things worse, it did in my case, many people with AS refuse to believe that any that anything wrong with them and it?s every one else fault, others just refuse to think about it, either way its denial. Then when the DX come through, there is no escape and it all comes out. AS adults, especial those diagnosed as adults, can suffer from a multitude of secondary problems depending on their personal circumstances and experiences. These can range fro a crash in self esteem, chronic guilt, depression, anxiety and even post traumatic stress. I wish you all the best J

I dont think you will be able to stop this obsession. but you may be able move him on to something else of another obsesion. The way you describe it my guess is that he is reciving some sort of sesory stimulation from the bags. try buble wreab, velvet, statin, lycra. does he like tight fitting cloths that "cudle him". If you talk to him and find out you can move him on to a safer version. like any adiction , the more you try and stop the harder it gets. best of luck J

how about ZT

For the record I am an AS male with to AS kids

Hear a link for my smallholders group The Trap Man UK manufacturers & suppliers of humane cage traps. J