Sunday, February 13, 2005
Apergers syndrome not Asparagus:)
I met Sneh on my way to the school. We haven't met since long time and so we both got into a brief chat. We took turns to find out what each one was doing. She was excited to introduce her husband to me while I was excited to share about my student teaching with her. Our class is pretty heterogeous wherein we try to work with students who have been identified with specific behavior problems. We also have students who have Aperger's syndrome. As a biology post doc, Sneh could onbly relate the syndrom'es name to Asparagus and wanted to know more about it.
I also thought of sharing my information through my blog. So here we go:
Asperger Syndrome or (Asperger's Disorder) is a neurobiological disorder named for a Viennese physician, Hans Asperger, who in 1944 published a paper which described a pattern of behaviors in several young boys who had normal intelligence and language development, but who also exhibited autistic-like behaviors and marked deficiencies in social and communication skills. In spite of the publication of his paper in the 1940's, it wasn't until 1994 that Asperger Syndrome was added to the DSM IV and only in the past few years has AS been recognized by professionals and parents.
Individuals with AS can exhibit a variety of characteristics and the disorder can range from mild to severe. Persons with AS show marked deficiencies in social skills, have difficulties with transitions or changes and prefer sameness. They often have obsessive routines and may be preoccupied with a particular subject of interest. They have a great deal of difficulty reading nonverbal cues (body language) and very often the individual with AS has difficulty determining proper body space. Often overly sensitive to sounds, tastes, smells, and sights, the person with AS may prefer soft clothing, certain foods, and be bothered by sounds or lights no one else seems to hear or see. It's important to remember that the person with AS perceives the world very differently. Therefore, many behaviors that seem odd or unusual are due to those neurological differences and not the result of intentional rudeness or bad behavior, and most certainly not the result of "improper parenting".
By definition, those with AS have a normal IQ and many individuals (although not all), exhibit exceptional skill or talent in a specific area. Because of their high degree of functionality and their naiveté, those with AS are often viewed as eccentric or odd and can easily become victims of teasing and bullying. While language development seems, on the surface, normal, individuals with AS often have deficits in pragmatics and prosody. Vocabularies may be extraordinarily rich and some children sound like "little professors." However, persons with AS can be extremely literal and have difficulty using language in a social context.
At this time there is a great deal of debate as to exactly where AS fits. It is presently described as an autism spectrum disorder and Uta Frith, in her book AUTISM AND ASPERGER'S SYNDROME, described AS individuals as "having a dash of Autism". Some professionals feel that AS is the same as High Functioning Autism, while others feel that it is better described as a Nonverbal Learning Disability. AS shares many of the characteristics of PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder; Not otherwise specified), HFA, and NLD and because it was virtually unknown until a few years ago, many individuals either received an incorrect diagnosis or remained undiagnosed. For example, it is not at all uncommon for a child who was initially diagnosed with ADD or ADHD be re-diagnosed with AS. In addition, some individuals who were originally diagnosed with HFA or PDD-NOS are now being given the AS diagnosis and many individuals have a dual diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism.
Courtesy:http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/aswhatisit.html
I also thought of sharing my information through my blog. So here we go:
Asperger Syndrome or (Asperger's Disorder) is a neurobiological disorder named for a Viennese physician, Hans Asperger, who in 1944 published a paper which described a pattern of behaviors in several young boys who had normal intelligence and language development, but who also exhibited autistic-like behaviors and marked deficiencies in social and communication skills. In spite of the publication of his paper in the 1940's, it wasn't until 1994 that Asperger Syndrome was added to the DSM IV and only in the past few years has AS been recognized by professionals and parents.
Individuals with AS can exhibit a variety of characteristics and the disorder can range from mild to severe. Persons with AS show marked deficiencies in social skills, have difficulties with transitions or changes and prefer sameness. They often have obsessive routines and may be preoccupied with a particular subject of interest. They have a great deal of difficulty reading nonverbal cues (body language) and very often the individual with AS has difficulty determining proper body space. Often overly sensitive to sounds, tastes, smells, and sights, the person with AS may prefer soft clothing, certain foods, and be bothered by sounds or lights no one else seems to hear or see. It's important to remember that the person with AS perceives the world very differently. Therefore, many behaviors that seem odd or unusual are due to those neurological differences and not the result of intentional rudeness or bad behavior, and most certainly not the result of "improper parenting".
By definition, those with AS have a normal IQ and many individuals (although not all), exhibit exceptional skill or talent in a specific area. Because of their high degree of functionality and their naiveté, those with AS are often viewed as eccentric or odd and can easily become victims of teasing and bullying. While language development seems, on the surface, normal, individuals with AS often have deficits in pragmatics and prosody. Vocabularies may be extraordinarily rich and some children sound like "little professors." However, persons with AS can be extremely literal and have difficulty using language in a social context.
At this time there is a great deal of debate as to exactly where AS fits. It is presently described as an autism spectrum disorder and Uta Frith, in her book AUTISM AND ASPERGER'S SYNDROME, described AS individuals as "having a dash of Autism". Some professionals feel that AS is the same as High Functioning Autism, while others feel that it is better described as a Nonverbal Learning Disability. AS shares many of the characteristics of PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder; Not otherwise specified), HFA, and NLD and because it was virtually unknown until a few years ago, many individuals either received an incorrect diagnosis or remained undiagnosed. For example, it is not at all uncommon for a child who was initially diagnosed with ADD or ADHD be re-diagnosed with AS. In addition, some individuals who were originally diagnosed with HFA or PDD-NOS are now being given the AS diagnosis and many individuals have a dual diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism.
Courtesy:http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/aswhatisit.html
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Hi Vaibahav,
Thanks for checking in.
You are a great stroy teller. I really loved reading them .
Keep up your good work.
Thanks for checking in.
You are a great stroy teller. I really loved reading them .
Keep up your good work.
My son has Asberger Syndrome. He was actually born in 1994, so we have been right behind the information curve the whole time. The thing that is the toughest, and BELIEVE ME this is amazingly hard, is that there is a great deal of information desribing the condition, and virutally NOTHING written on how to help the person with the disorder. We basically just have to wing it and it is horribly frustrating. Any insight you may have would be appreciated.
Ah, finally a place, to maybe gain some perspective on AS. I met a "geek" who had just graduated from law school in 1985 and I was just entering law school. He was handsome, intelligent and "eccentric", to say the least, but I really liked him. There were many many signs that he had serious human relationship problems, but I fell in love and married him anyway. (he was 31 & I was 37) I had been married before, and had two kids, a boy 8 and a girl 12. There were a lot of things we enjoyed together, and he was pretty good with the kids. After 5 years of marriage, and him not working, he got a job as a Tribal Judge on a remote Indian Reservation, that he kept for 13 yr. before he was fired for his bizarre behavior. I was married to him for 13 years, and my mental & physical health took a dive that I am still trying to recover from. I recently learned my problem is called "Cassandra Syndrome." I didn't know he had Asperger's syndrome, until I described his bizarre behavior to a clinical psychologist about 4 years ago. To make a long story, short, I still love this man very much, but I think it is more like a mother's love for a child. I really can't stand being around him because he is so mad at me for leaving him, and is more verbally abusive to me. He also got extremely physically abusive (got my son down & was kicking him.) to my son when my son was 15 and I had to have my son stay somewhere else, or the Judge would have killed him. He remarried 2 years after we divorced, to a disasterous abusive extremely jealous alcoholic. That lasted for 2 years. He is 54, and and now he is about to marry someone who is very odd and bipolar, who is somewhat educated and is about 39 or 40. They got engaged quickly and are marrying again. I really hope it works out for both of them, but in reality, it looks like a violent disaster waiting to happen. The reason I know all of this, is he still works with people I know and he has a relationship with my 34 yr. old daughter. (Yes, I warned her that he might make inappropriate advances toward her, and to be careful & explained Aspergers to her) My problem is, why do I even care what he is doing??? He is a crazy abusive, condescending, can't help himself or get a clue adult with serious Asperger's problems? I have been married twice and had many long term relationships that I have walked away from and NEVER LOOKED back. Why am I still sort of "obsessed" with this pathetic Asperger 8 yrs later. I know I need help, that is why I am asking here. I never contact him, but people keep telling me what he is doing, and it bothers me. Why?? Why should I care? Any suggestions how to let this go I would appreciate it. I think I will just ban any information about him from my daughter & friends. But how do you make this feeling go away?? How do you understand this feelings. Feelings are mysterious and can grab you at the most unexpected times.
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