Asperger Syndrome in Adolescence: Living With the Ups, the Downs and Things in Between

338 Pages·2003·1.18 MB·English

by  Luke Jackson

Asperger Syndrome in Adolescence
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Asperger Syndrome
in Adolescence
Living with the Ups, the Downs
and Things in Between
Edited by Liane Holliday Willey
Foreword by Luke Jackson
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
London and New York
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FirstpublishedintheUnitedKingdomin2003
byJessicaKingsleyPublishersLtd
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Copyright©2003JessicaKingsleyPublishers
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Aspergersyndromeinadolescence:livingwiththeups,thedowns,andthingsinbetween
/editedbyLianeHollidayWilley;forewordbyLukeJackson.
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindexes.
ISBN1-84301-742-2(alk.paper)
1.Asperger’ssyndrome.2.Teenagers--Mentalhealth.3.Teenagerswithmental
disabilities.4.Autisticchildren.I.Willey,LianeHolliday.
RJ506.A9A862003
616.89’82’00835--dc21 2003041610
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
ACIPcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
ISBN1843107422
PrintedandBoundinGreatBritainby
AthenaeumPress,Gateshead,TyneandWear
Contents
FOREWORD 7
Luke Jackson, UK
Introduction 9
Liane Holliday Willey
1. Asperger Syndrome in the Adolescent Years 13
Richard Howlin, USA
2. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) 38
Tony Attwood, Australia
3. The Sexuality of Adolescents
with Asperger Syndrome 69
Isabelle Hénault, Canada
4. Can My Baby Learn to Dance?
Exploring the Friendships of Asperger Teens 98
Steven E. Gutstein, USA
5. The Importance of Occupational
Therapy for Adolescents with Asperger Syndrome 129
Marc Willey and Liane Holliday Willey, USA
6. Safety Issues for Adolescents
with Asperger Syndrome 148
Dennis Debbaudt, USA
7. When the Thunder Roars 179
Liane Holliday Willey, USA
8. Settling into the Diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome 196
Rebecca Moyes, USA
9. Families and Parenting: The Domino Effect 207
Jacqui Jackson, UK
10. Starting from Scratch:
Being Innovative in Finding Interventions
for your Adolescent with Asperger Syndrome 227
DeAnn Foley, USA
11. Education and the Adolescent
with Asperger Syndrome 243
Lise Pyles, Australia
12. Disclosure for People on the Autistic Spectrum:
Working Towards Better Mutual
Understanding with Others 283
Stephen M. Shore, USA
13. How Do I Be Me? 312
Mike Stanton, UK
THE CONTRIBUTORS 324
SUBJECT INDEX 327
NAME INDEX 335
Foreword
When I was asked to write a Foreword my first reaction was
astonishment. Why would someone ask a simple fourteen-year-old to
doaForewordforabookwithlotsofbigwordsinandbylotsoffamous
people? Well, that was not exactly my first reaction – rather just one of
them. My first reaction when I actually read the book was ‘hallelujah’.
(OKsothatisaword,notareactionbutlet’snotbepedantic!)Anyhow,I
was glad that finally, here was a book that dealt with the whole
minefield of adolescence without missing out the difficult bits. I started
out writing my Freaks, Geeks and Asperger Syndrome book because
althoughtherewereloadsofbooksthattalkedaboutAStherewerevery
few that dealt with the issues that I, and I am sure loads of others, were
going through in adolescence. This book gives easy solutions on how
besttohelpandunderstandanyoneinadolescencewithASandbelieve
me that is no easy task! Although this book is aimed primarily at carers,
parents and teachers of adolescents with AS, people that are just
interestedinfindingoutaboutAS,andinfactanylivingbeingthateven
vaguely knows someone with AS, it would have helped me greatly to
understand at least some things about others and myself.
I do have to admit that although…uh hum…not liking to boast
(myfamilymaydisagreehere!)Iamagoodreaderandfairlyintelligent,
Ididstruggletodigestsomeofthemoreindepthstuffandthatishowit
should be because these are aimed towards adults working with AS
adolescents. They give some accurate and valuable information and I
particularlylikethefactthattherearemanyauthorsfrommanywalksof
life,allofferingvaluablecontributions.Thatishowlifeis–notjustone
opinion, not just one type of adolescent with AS, or indeed adolescent
without,butmanyvariationsallstrugglingtofindourwayintheworld.
This book will go a long way towards helping many do that.
As a teenager with AS myself I guess I am quite entitled to lose
focus,getintomoods,slamafewdoorsandgenerallybemoreof apain
7
8 ASPERGERSYNDROMEINADOLESCENCE
in the…erm…neck than usual! This is where this book is invaluable.
From all of those – shall we say – interesting topics of sex and other
suchseeminglyunmentionables(thoughnotinourhouse!)tocognitive
behaviour therapy, it is unique in the fact that it covers many topics
previouslyuntouched;friendships,sexuality,depression,sensoryissues,
disclosure and most definitely issues about trying to retain a sense of
identity in the midst of an alien world (well OK Mike Stanton didn’t
quite write that but that is paraphrased by Jackson!). Each chapter
weaves its way in and out of the difficulties of adolescence and AS with
amazinginsightandasateenagerwithASmyself,itisparticularlygood
to read chapters from Liane and Stephen and know that they truly
understand what I and others are going through.
I especially liked Richard Howlin’s chapter, ‘Asperger Syndrome in
the Adolescent Years’, and the way he summarized so perfectly how
children form groups, almost wolf packs, where everybody follows a
specific social role, and how he describes the confusion of being a
teenagerwithAspergerSyndrome.Thatisexactlywhatlifeislikeatthe
moment and a book which helps any of us deal with such stuff is long
overdue and most welcome. I was amazed at how Jacqui Jackson (yep,
that’s right, she is my mum) could view our crazy household with such
humour whilst also giving such useful tips on how to manage a family
withmorethanonechildandsucharangeofautisticspectrumdisorders
(I prefer to call them gifts!). I am very proud of her and also very
surprised that her mind hasn’t blocked all memory of certain events
because of the stress!
Although I have only described a few of the chapters in this book,
every single chapter goes towards making this book what it is. Asperger
Syndrome and Adolescence will definitely help people to understand
people with AS, or ‘aspies’ as Liane Holliday Willey calls us.
One thing that makes this book stand out from the rest is the fact
that it acknowledges the fact that adolescence is a particularly difficult
time of life for someone with Asperger Syndrome and aims to inform
othersonhowbesttohelp.StrugglingthroughadolescencemyselfIcan
only say a great big ‘thank you’ to all the authors – we need all the help
we can get!
– Luke Jackson