My ASD Child

As a young child, Jayne was consumed by Pokemon, the collectible card game of animated creatures originated in Japan. It was no mere pastime, but an all-encompassing interest that engaged her considerable vocabulary to the exclusion of all other age-appropriate attachments or interests. And it was accompanied by other troubling signs: an inability to make eye contact with others, to engage with peers in a reciprocal fashion, and to make friends. As Jayne matured, her social isolation deepened, as did the uncommon and all-consuming nature of her interests. As a teen, she developed an exhaustive knowledge about everything related to a fast-food chain in the state where she resides. At an age when conformity to the norm is at a premium and castigation of those who deviate is most severe, Jayne inhabits an island of her own inaccessible idiosyncrasy. As little as 14 years ago, she also may have had difficulty getting a psychiatric diagnosis that fit. Too verbal and intellectually

The diagnosis of Aspergers requires the demonstration of qualitative impairments in social interaction and restricted patterns of interest, criteria which are identical to autism. In contrast to autism, there are no criteria in the cluster of language and communication symptoms, and onset criteria differ in that there should be no clinically significant delay in language acquisition, cognitive and self-help skills. Those symptoms result in significant impairment in social and occupational functioning. In some contrast to the social presentation in autism, children with Aspergers find themselves socially isolated, but are not usually withdrawn in the presence of others. Typically, they approach others but in an inappropriate or eccentric fashion. For example, they may engage the interlocutor, usually an adult, in one-sided conversation characterized by long-winded, pedantic speech, about a favorite and often unusual and narrow topic. They may express interest in friendships and in