Autistic Daily

Zach Hoeken on Flickr

With statistics being thrown in our faces everyday like 1 in 150 children are diagnosed with autism, it’s sometimes easy to forget these children grow up to be adults with the same disease. Or, that there are adults who perhaps have not been diagnosed or suffer from a milder variant, but still in need of resources.

Some resources are available for the autistic adult, and Pittsburgh Autism and Parenting Examiner Dawn Matthews has compiled a few that exists in the state of Pennsylvania, and finding such resources may be a matter of “googling” your city and the words “autism” or “Asperger’s Syndrome.”

“There isn’t an abundance of information about adult ASD,” Matthew said.  “In fact, the psychiatric world seems anxious to slap all sorts of labels on adults, except autism spectrum disorder.  Meanwhile, it’s the first label they like to put on children.”

Those interested in a preliminary self-diagnoses can take the Aspie quiz, and then take their results to a health practitioner for further investigation.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Breast Still Best, Even With Autism Risk? Doc Weighs In.
• Enhansa: An Effective Autism Supplement?
• Loopey The Pig + City Ordinance = Autistic Boy’s Heartbreak
• Autism Rate Now One Percent Of All Children?
• The Sexy Stereotype Of Autism In Hollywood

macleans.ca

Macleans in Canada has written an article on the seemingly rising popularity of displaying autism and Asperger’s characters on screen.

From Dr. Gregory House diagnosing a medical disease in a boy with autism and unable to communicate, to Dr. Temperance Brennan on Bones, the autism spectrum is flooding primetime television.

What exactly is the appeal of these characters that draws writers to them?

From Macleans:

“Within the limited formats of episodic TV and genre fiction there’s a limit to the physically challenged’s bag of dramatic tricks—the blind hero who’s more at home than the villains in a darkened room, for instance, has been a pulp fiction staple for decades. Neurological quirks, however, have endless possibilities for writers.”

“Wonder workers are always welcome in popular media, but superhero skills are not the entire source of the autistic characters’ appeal. We also love them for their lack of social skills. We, at least those of us without autistic relatives, can laugh when Christopher Boone, in the midst of a harrowing journey alone to his mother’s house, barks like a dog at fellow passengers who come too close to him, or when House is unspeakably rude to some pompous hospital administrator.”

Regardless of why we and television producers can’t get enough of these “quirky” characters, the biggest question is: What effect will bringing autism to the forefront of primetime do for those on the spectrum?

Will employers soon learn to recognize these individuals immediately and learn to accept their differences versus viewing them as problem employees? Will co-workers brush the once seemingly rude and frightening office guy as “just like that weirdo on television,” coming to an understanding of his behavior?

Possibly Related Posts:

• Breast Still Best, Even With Autism Risk? Doc Weighs In.
• Enhansa: An Effective Autism Supplement?
• Loopey The Pig + City Ordinance = Autistic Boy’s Heartbreak
• Autism Rate Now One Percent Of All Children?
• The Sexy Stereotype Of Autism In Hollywood

Adan Garcia on Flickr

After sending out dozens of resumes and getting no positive response, Brian Rafferty, who has both Asperger’s syndrome and cerebral palsy, decided to take the bad economy into his own hands and open his own second hand bookstore.

“With the help of my family and friends I have opened this second-hand bookshop and intend to support myself, and give a purpose to my life,” a pamphlet that Brian hands out to customers reads. “I don’t think I am unemployable.”

Brian’s mother wrote a letter to every potential employer he applied to, explaining his condition.

“I have no idea whether the lack of response was due to his Asperger’s or the recession –a combination of the two, probably,” she said.

Many individuals with Asperger’s syndrome find solace in self-employment after the regular “9-5 grind” doesn’t work out for them.

Such was the case with Brahm Cohen, famous for creating Bit Torrent, a software program that allows users to download and share digital information, such as music.

And notable autistic speaker and author Temple Grandin once suggested that Asperger’s individuals should create services that demanded others come to them, versus seeking employment elsewhere.

Perhaps courses in entrepreneurship should be a part of the various “social and living skills” so highly emphasized when raising these individuals to be functional members of society.

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Sexy Stereotype Of Autism In Hollywood
• iPods May Help Those With Asperger’s
• Adams’ Max Mayer Tells About First Asperger Experience
• Asperger Male Scott James Will Be X Factor Hit
• Aspergers Need Prompts In Social Interactions