My ASD Child

Question Can you help me with behavior management for teenagers with Aspergers Syndrome in mainstream school (e.g., interrupting, joking, attention seeking)? Answer Social boundaries are not always understood by teenagers with Aspergers (high-functioning autism). Teens as a whole may have difficulty with these concepts; however, the teen with Aspergers may have a tougher time understanding how his behavior is disruptive or unacceptable. Teenagers with Aspergers struggle to understand how to control their feelings. Anger, stress, anxiety, and frustration can build quickly. This can cause inappropriate behaviors as the teenager strains to maintain control. Other times the teenager may act improperly without realizing what has happened. Here are some commonly used treatment options: • Individual counseling— Much like Cognitive-behavioral therapy, a trained professional counselor will attempt to develop a relationship with the teen with Aspergers. Teens can ben...

Language seems to develop on time in children with Aspergers (high functioning autism), but words, while formulated according to the rules, seem to lack functional effectiveness, because they most often are used to express immediate needs or to expound on the child’s favorite subjects. The child with Aspergers seems not to see the main idea or the pivotal point. They tend to have problems with abstraction, inference, or practical, functional language. And their semantic understanding is limited, which frequently shows up in tests and instructional measures of listening comprehension. Instead of delaying language development, Aspergers impairs the subtleties of social communication. Aspergers children have difficulty understanding nuances such as irony, sarcasm and fanciful or metaphoric language. Many Aspergers children take language literally. Expressions such as “watching paint dry,” or “smart as a tack” leave these children very confused. Children with Aspergers are of...

Question My question is my 13 yr old Asperger daughter does not pay attention to what is going on around her. Like if something looks dangerous, she doesn't seem to mind…. does not really pay attention crossing road or in parking lots, gets in trouble at school for doodling rather than listening, and so on. Is this part of Aspergers? Answer In the past, kids with Asperger Syndrome (now called high functioning autism) would sometimes get an ADHD diagnosis when they just couldn't focus in school. Today, we know a lot more about the differences between Aspergers and ADHD. Still, there are many similarities that can be difficult even for therapists to straighten out. Theoretically, the distinction is easy enough. Asperger Syndrome is a part of the Autistic spectrum with emotional, social and possible verbal/motor impairments. ADHD and others may also have social components, but they're executive function disorders that usually go away as the youngster grow...