My ASD Child

" How should I begin talking to my 12 year old autistic son (high functioning) about puberty?"   Talking about sexuality with an HFA child needs to be straight forward. Autistic individuals do not pick up on social cues, therefore when talking about sexuality it is important to use concrete terms. Use real terms to describe what you are talking about. Expect that your child will be a sexual being, and understand that with a diagnosis of autism often comes an inability to control impulse behaviors. It is important to be proactive when preparing yourself and your child for puberty. Teach him that it is okay to be a sexual being, but this is also a private time. Teach him about good touch versus bad touch so that he is not vulnerable. Let him know that you are comfortable (and work at it if you are not) with this type of conversation so that he can be comfortable too. Sometimes it's difficult to accept this reality (i.e., that they are sexual beings)

"I would like some tips on how to teach a younger sibling (age 3, not in school yet due to rural location) not to pick up unwanted behaviours from his Asperger's brother." You might be concerned that your 3-year-old will pick up unwanted behaviours because he might have Asperger’s, also. Asperger’s does, indeed, have a genetic component. New research in the area of Asperger’s has shown that toddler siblings of Asperger's children are more likely to exhibit the same atypical behaviours as their brothers and sisters with the Asperger's, even when they don’t eventually develop the disorder. Andy Shih, PhD, of the Baby Sibling Research Consortium, states that this increases the importance of careful monitoring of high-risk siblings of children with Asperger’s for any signs of a disorder. If one should occur, you are well-situated for early intervention. If atypical behaviours occur, but there is no Asperger’s, you will feel relief at knowing that your second ch

“I’m a teacher and I think one of my students may have high functioning autism. What things should I look for in determining whether or not this child may have the disorder? Also, is it too early to approach the parents about my concern?” Click here for the answer...

"Would you have a simple summary, kind of a snapshot, that describes the most relevant aspects of AS that I can give my Aspie son's teacher so that she can get a basic understanding of this disorder without having to read a book on it?"   Click here for the answer...