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ASPIRES is an on-line
resource for spouses and family members of adults diagnosed or
suspected to be on the autistic spectrum. Our approach to one
another and towards our "significant others" is directed towards
solving problems in our relationship with a spectrum-sitting
spouse.
ASPIRES is an e-mail
subscription list for individuals with AS, and those who have a
parent, spouse, or child with AS. We share our family and
relational experiences, resources and survival tips as well as offer
encouragement and hope. Through sharing, we hope to lighten
one another's burdens and find positive solutions to many of the
troubling challenges that characterize our relationships and bridge
the communication gap that exists in everyday life.
"If there were no change,
there would be no butterflies"
Author Unknown
DSM-5 Debate: Committee
Backs Off Some Changes,
Re-Opens  Comments
We are not all on the
spectrum now
We need a more robust
definition of autism,
otherwise we risk it losing
all sense as a diagnosis.
This is the text of a speech
that was given at the
conference ‘Autism, Ethics
and the Good Life’, held at
the Royal Society in London
on 2 April 2012 (World
Autism Awareness Day).
Why Women With Autism Are
Invisible
The CDC just reported
that while 1 in 54 boys are
diagnosed with autism, only
1 in 252 girls are. Some
advocates say women and
girls with the disorder just
aren't getting the help they
need.
Thinking Smarter About
People Who Think Different
One of the forthcoming books
I’m most excited about is
Steve Silberman’s
NeuroTribes: A smarter way
of thinking about people who
think differently. Like
Oliver Sacks (and Steve has
written the
definitive profile of the
neurologist),
Steve is an incredibly
sensitive observer of
others. (He’s also a gifted
writer and absurdly nice
guy.) Steve isn’tinterested
in mere description of a
condition – he wants to
understand how his subjects
see the world, immersing
himself in their pleasures,
passions and struggles.
The
Partner's Guide to Asperger
Syndrome
Susan J. Moreno, Marci
Wheeler and Kealah Parkinson
Foreword by Tony Attwood
A must read for all non
spectrum (NS) partners of AS
men. "Adults with Asperger
Syndrome (AS)
often
have difficulties acquiring
relationship skills due to
the
defining characteristics of
the syndrome, experiences
with peers during childhood
and adolescence, and the
expectations of their
partners. However, an
increasing number do go on
to achieve happy and
successful long-term
relationships with
non-spectrum (NS) partners".
...Read excerpts
A
Message from GRASP
GRASP responds to the proposed
changes in the DMS-V
regarding morphing Asperger
Syndrome and other labels
under one umbrella titled,
“Autism Spectrum Disorders”.
What does this mean to you
and your family in terms of
services and diagnosis, and
what can YOU do?
Husband David Finch writes 'The Journal of Best
Practices' to save his marriage…
Even if you're an ordinary "neurotypical," there are plenty of good
reasons to read David Finch's "The Journal of Best Practices: A Memoir
of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to Be a Better
Husband."
...excerpts. Dave is also the author of
"Asperger’s:
Somewhere Inside, a Path to Empathy," which led
to this book.
The autism
spectrum. Where is it headed?
There's something different about dad
We've heard of the difficulties faced by parents trying to cope with
Asperger syndrome in children but it's tough too being the child of an
Asperger parent.
Michael Fitzgerald, who recently retired from his post as the first
professor of child and adolescent psychiatry in Ireland at
Trinity College
offers his perspective.
Book Review
“Something
Different about Dad”
How to Live with your Asperger’s Parent
By Roger N. Meyer
A Powerful Identity, a Vanishing Diagnosis
It is one of the most intriguing labels in
psychiatry. Children with
Asperger’s syndrome,
a mild form of
autism, are socially awkward and often physically clumsy, but
many are verbal prodigies, speaking in complex sentences at early
ages, reading newspapers fluently by age 5 or 6 and acquiring
expertise in some preferred topic — stegosaurs, clipper ships,
Interstate highways — that will astonish adults and bore their
playmates to tears. In recent years, this once obscure diagnosis,
given to more than four times as many boys as girls, has become
increasingly common. Much of the growing prevalence of autism, which
now affects about 1 percent of American children, according to
federal data, can be attributed to Asperger’s and other mild forms
of the disorder. And Asperger’s has exploded into popular culture
through books and films depicting it as the realm of brilliant nerds
and savant like geniuses.
Asperger Marriage: Viewing Partnerships
Through a Different Lens
Aspergers Syndrome (AS) is a
neurobiological condition on the higher-functioning
end of the autism spectrum. Across individuals, there is wide
variation of AS traits, of how each person experiences their
neurology, and how AS evolves as they age. Shore (2003), a member
and President Emeritus of the Asperger’s Association of New England
(AANE) Board of Directors has said, “When you meet one individual
with Asperger Syndrome, you have met one individual with Asperger
Syndrome.” Marriages or partnerships with a person with AS are often
very challenging, with mental health consequences for both members
of the couple, for their children, and for their larger family
systems. In this paper we will share insights on the complexities of
these partnerships with hope that this information will help and
encourage other clinicians to better understand and support people
in these relationships, whether working with individuals, couples,
families, or groups. Our insights come from our professional
experience with individuals and with groups for the partners of men
with AS at AANE, along with review of the literature on AS.
A GREAT article for children,
siblings, partner's and spouses connected to AS
Growing
up
in
an
Asperger Family
by Maxine Aston
View as HTML
or
download as a PDF.
ASPIRES Salutes Ron
Hedgcock's New Book
Confessions of an Unashamed Asperger
Foreword by Professor Tony Attwood.
"I have learned a great deal from Ron Hedgcock. Those who have
attended my seminars
will have heard several of his quotations describing his experiences
and insights into Asperger’s Syndrome. He is now in his 70s, having
lived with three wives; and has had a successful career as an actor.
He also adores cats, who are now his family and friends. His
autobiography is unusual in that it covers seven decades and is one
of the first to describe the aging process and Asperger’s Syndrome.
He has a wicked sense of humour; and in describing his thoughts,
emotions and experiences, Ron is forthright and at times
confronting. His descriptions are authentic and will be endorsed by
other adults who have the Syndrome. His self-analysis is extremely
interesting for clinicians, but his explanations will also be
particularly valuable for the partners of those who have similar
characteristics, and for family member who are trying to understand
a father or grandfather. Ron is a wise elder in the ‘tribe’ of
people with AS; and his eloquent autobiography will be a source of
explanation and insight for those who are discovering and exploring
the world as perceived and experienced by someone who has Asperger’s
Syndrome." Tony Atwood
Practical Advice and
Activities for Couples and Counsellors
Asperger Syndrome (AS) can
affect some of the fundamental ingredients required to make
a relationship work, such as emotional empathy and
communication. Maxine Aston, author of Aspergers in Love,
has created this workbook to help couples where one of the
partners has Asperger Syndrome deal with the difficulties
that may arise in their relationship.
Maxine Aston
22 Things a Woman Must
Know
If She Loves a Man with
Asperger's Syndrome
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Life with a Partner or Spouse with Asperger Syndrome:
Going over
the Edge?
Practical Steps to Saving You and Your Relationship
Kathy J.Marshack, Ph.D.; Foreword by Stephen Shore, Ed.D
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