G’s Place

Tomorrow I am speaking at AANE’s panel about college students with Asperger’s. I am one of the parent representatives on the panel.

I am working out what I am going to say (I have eight minutes).

Here’s the key points I want to make:

• Find a social skill coach. Someone who does not work for the University. This person should take your place as your child’s advocate. It should be someone you can work with, but someone who will be your child’s confidant (in other words, sometimes they may not tell you everything!)
• Realize that some of the feelings you have when your child goes away are normal “empty nest” feelings.  Now, these feelings may be amplified because all of a sudden you are forced to be out of the loop. I think it’s important to let go, but it’s important to realize there aren’t books or articles or anything to help us (parents with kids on the spectrum) figure out if it’s really time to let go.
• Take everything the college tells you with a grain of salt. They are so scared of “helicopter parents“. To an administrator who doesn’t understand Asperger’s Syndrome, we may seem like parents who are too interfering.  If you encounter college officials like this, make sure you have the social coach. Let the social coach deal with the college. It will be better for your child if they learn how to rely on someone else.
  Also, call every day if you need to. We were told at orientation not to do that, but my daughter called every day at 9PM. It helped her settle down. I also would go and see her, and stay overnight with her, at least once a month. We stayed in a hotel, out of the dorm, and gave her a chance to settle down a bit. She found coming home a little too much of a schedule and environment change.

I don’t know what else to say tomorrow. Hopefully it will go over well. My daughter will be there to keep me honest.

Here are my blurbs for autism month:

We are having our first parent support meeting in Hopedale MA. It’s for parents of teens and young adults with Asperger’s. We are affiliated with the Asperger’s Association of New England. Our first meeting is April 2 from 6:30 - 8:30 PM at the Hopedale library. Feel free to email me if you have any questions - or just show up!

There is an awesome article written by a woman who is a manager at CNN, and also aspie.

Bev has posted a great awareness video.

And my (not-so) little aspie will be graduating from college with honors.

!!!!

This post is from a psychology professor who is making his students blog (cool). The prof also focuses on Asperger’s Syndrome.

So he makes is abnormal psych (WHY IS IT CALLED THAT!!) read John Elder Robison’s book, and also blog about it. Well, John has been responding to some of the blog posts. How cool - you are in college, evaluating a book, and the author responds to what you think of his work.

In a bigger sense, you have an aspie responding to what future psychologists (who will no doubt work with other “aspergians”) think about his idea of how the world is. THAT is way cool.

I should be working on my needs analysis paper (it’s for AANE…) but I just don’t wanna……bleh!!!

I am going to write a paper based on AANE, so I am getting info from their site, and it has been redone..and it looks really nice. They have a great video about the organization here.

Check out their online support groups, look for a social skills or support group, or  consider becoming a member (well worth it!).

Or just donate!