Hello! I am new here! I have an almost 16 year old son with AS. He is not on any medication. I feel he suffers from seasonal affect, anxiety, some mood swings and possibly slight depression. I don't want to put him on prescription drugs, but I feel it may be time to try something. His main teacher feels his anxiety gets in the way of his learning. Has anyone tried St. John's Wort with any success?? Or any other herb/supplement/vitamin with any success for depression/anxiety?? I already have him on a multi-vitamin, fish oil, and Vitamin D. I was also looking into Seredyn for anxiety and Amoryn for mood. Has anyone ever tried those? I would love to get any advice on this as I really do not want to put him on prescription drugs with their side effects, but I would love take the edge off of some of those symptoms. I greatly appreciate any feedback!! Thank you!!! Tom's Mom :) ...

Anyone here have experience dealing with their local department of vocational rehab? I can't qualify where I live but my career counselor (private service so I can only afford a few sessions) says they are real hit and miss with understanding AS. She told me that she has heard stories of AS people who do qualify and then matched with counselors who know nothing about AS and blame them for their own problems. She also said she has heard a few success stories. I am thinking of applying multiple times to see if I can eventually be qualified. What are your experiences? ...

Hello! I am new here! I have an almost 16 year old son with AS. He is not on any medication. I feel he suffers from seasonal affect, anxiety, some mood swings and possibly slight depression. I don't want to put him on prescription drugs, but I feel it may be time to try something. His main teacher feels his anxiety gets in the way of his learning. Has anyone tried St. John's Wort with any success?? Or any other herb/supplement/vitamin with any success for depression/anxiety?? I already have him on a multi-vitamin, fish oil, and Vitamin D. I was also looking into Seredyn for anxiety and Amoryn for mood. Has anyone ever tried those? I would love to get any advice on this as I really do not want to put him on prescription drugs with their side effects, but I would love take the edge off of some of those symptoms. I greatly appreciate any feedback!! Thank you!!! Tom's Mom :) ...

I don't know why, but I am kinda in an extended funk lately. Everything has been going just as well as it usually does, which isn't perfect, but it's ok... but I just don't feel as great about it as I usually do. I wouldn't even call it depression, more just mental fatigue. Don't know what else to say, but just felt like I should get that out there. Thanks. ...

I really need like a week off. Instead I'm getting six days of work the week after next. I don't think this is why I'm in a funk, I just think I am burnt out on the work part of life for a moment. I have to cover for another girl going on vacation for the next three weeks, and I think that got my mind running, but I can't afford to miss a week... damn. ...

I don't understand when a girl is interested. There stated plainly. I wish I was better at it, then i would get when a girl is looking at me, or through me. Let me state this, being a lesbian it's a small dating pool i can choose from. Being an Aspie, makes it even harder it seems since most people love going to clubs and bars, which sometimes i am good with, though i go absolutely deaf after a while. I just don't know. sometimes i feel as though i will be alone forever, trying to find someone who can put up with my "weirdness" and someone i would not feel guilty of making them deal with my Autistic side of things. Silly? All i know is i need help. ...

I just finished watching the season finale of Fringe, and not wanting to spoil the ending for anyone who hasn't watched the episode yet, I'll just ask - - is Peter really gone? And if he is, does anyone know if there's going to be another season of the show? -Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer ...

Many of us here have sensory issues. Let's hear about your socks. What kind of socks (or stockings or tights if you're a lady) are your favorite? Material, length, style? Are they cheap or costly? Do you like socks with cute patterns or funky prints? My favorite socks are well made wool socks, like the Smartwool brand, though not limited to that brand. They have to be crew socks or knee high socks with no tight elastic cuffs. I don't really care if there's seam above the toes or not. Wools socks are generally pricey, so I try to preserve them by not wearing them at home. The moment I get home I put on some cheap fleece socks. In summer I wear cotton socks, the kind with at least 80% cotton. I wear socks with sandals (and I'm a girl) most of the time for protection and to prevent stinky sandals. Probably drive those fashion police nuts. My whole family wear socks with sandals. :D I absolutely can't stand those low ankle socks, they feel like socks that have slipped down but yo ...

Having AS allows me to visualize human interaction, and being gay gives me extra insight into gender and sexuality that I don't think a straight person could grasp. I could be wrong of course, but I recognize which behaviors are sexual. It is amazing how much sexuality drives NT interaction. Social occasions are fascinating because of all the complex mating behavior. I find it so incredible that people don't see how much time is spent engaging in sexual competition. I went to an art gallery with a friend to see the art and quickly realized how little time is actually spent enjoying the art. Everything from their presence in the gallery, to the make-up women wear, to the clothes, hair, walking style, level of alertness, colognes, the people around them are all symbols meant to communicate their desire. It is incredible how much time people spend engaging in sexual behavior. No wonder nothing gets done. ...

Hi I'm Shelley I have just joined Wrongplanet even though I don't know if I have Aspergers or not, after reading some posts a lot of things add up. I'm not good at eye contact I find it intimidating. I'm a loner I don't like crowds. I was bullied when I was in primary school. People tried to make me socialise but it just made me keep to myself all the more. :lol: :lol: 8) ...

Nanaimo Lacrosse Team To Raise Money for Autistic Children /A\ News Vancouver Island They're also being used to assist children with autism. It takes two years to train a dog to be an autism support dog and costs 37000 dollars. There's a two to three year waiting list to get one. A child will soon receive a fully trained guide dog, ...

Bonfadini aids autistic students and their families Culpeper Star Exponent Bonfadini, 39, who teaches a self-contained autism class, said she always knew she wanted to be a special education teacher. “It is so rewarding to see the social and academic growth the students make,” she said, “and parents of children with autism ...

Senator uses discredited link to try for ban of vaccines Tbo.com A Bradenton state senator brought the discredited link between childhood vaccines and autism to the floor of his chamber on Friday with an unsuccessful attempt to ban shots containing mercury. Republican Sen. ... and more »

Research published last month in Child Trends reported that happy marriages generally result in happy children.

Being a mother is certainly a challenge. But being a mom to a child with autism makes that challenge exponentially difficult. Often, these moms have to sacrifice a career to stay home and be available for their child's needs - all the way through adulthood and beyond. Given that strain, the frequency of sleep deprivation, the extended toilet training years, tantrums, and many marriages do not survive.

I didn't get asked, and I feel like I am the only one who hasn't. So, I just wanted to see if I was. ...

So, I'm looking into getting an evaluation and I was wondering what are the upsides and downsides of *having* a diagnosis of autism/HFA/Aspergers? The cost issue of the evaluation isn't an issue I'm concerned with, it's the potentially much larger long-term costs of such a diagnosis and usage of that information. How does it affect employers? Does a diagnosis of autism generally improve or decrease your likelihood of being hired in the event that you actually do have autism and you share that diagnosis with your employer? Does it affect how you are treated in the company (Are fellow employees more understanding of your difficulties and tend to be more accommodating instead of regarding you as the local asshole, or would they be that much more likely to treat as you as a pariah with *that* disease) by coworkers and your boss? How confidential are diagnoses kept in the USA? What would be the longterm wisdom of sharing a diagnosis with a teacher of a group-based course? I mean, ...

My daughter is with her father this weekend. This evening she called me and was hysterical. Some critter got a hold of her cat and pretty much ripped his tail off. There was a lot of blood and his fur was... it was a mess so she could not really tell how bad the damage was. I found a vet hospital that would take the cat tonight so her dad agreed to drive the cat out for an inspection as I had agreed to pay the first visit and possibly the surgery depending on cost and extent of damage. The cat could not be saved. Apparently the tail was not the only part of the cat's backside that was ruined. He would have needed at least three surgeries before the physical reconstruction. That was not even enough to guarantee the cat would ever be able to digest food or use the bathroom again. It was amazing he was still alive at that point. She called me from the vet crying. She told me they were going to put him to sleep. She kept asking if it was the right thing to do. I told her it was. ...

If you guys are avid Giftorcurse fans, you may have noticed that I have a grudge against adoption for some strange reason. Elaboration: I'm actually quite ambivalent about it. Is it right to lie to your kids, tell them they're your own, and then crush them by telling them the truth? A lot of folks adopt for the wrong reasons, like to have a sex slave or get away from the taxes or simply because they want to be loved by someone. Love. That is the big issue. Is it bound by our genes? Is it just a chemical reaction? An instinctual drive? I could go on. I guess the question of this project I had in mind is: "What is love?" Our protagonist, a boy who I will call Abbey for the moment, is an adoptee in a funk. He doesn't know what's real anymore. He's clockwork, going through the motions at a snail's pace. He and his "father" aren't getting along well, not since "Mom" died. Abbey hates himself for his adoptive status, makes him feel intagible. He doesn't exist. His name isn't his ow ...

Does anybody else ever feel like they really want to be with other people in a certain manner, but after reaching that opportunity suddenly found that you didn't know what to do afterwards? One example of what I mean is when you're around a group, and you feel like you want to be apart of the conversation, but when someone in the group adresses you, you find you don't actually know what to say, or you say something and it is overly negative or something. I ask because I've experienced the situation above many times, and recently had problems with this: I was feeling overwhelmed and worked up the courage to ask someone I hoped I could trust if they knew much about depression. I didn't want to just wallow in self pity and force that person to listen to it, but actually wanted help of some kind. Thing is, when I tried to describe what was ailing me, it generally came out as a jumbled, convaluted mess. I found I could understand my problems for the most part, but could never get ...

Lookie what's happened to my kitchen: And the soap was tipped over too, when I came home! It's almost empty. :( Thank the stars I'm outta here in a month. No more room mates after this! ...

I saw mention of Laughter Yoga and one person said that they'd be afraid to do this in front of people. Well, the truth is everyone does it altogether so you aren't the only one looking "however you think you look". The whole group looks funny which is why it's so great. I've been involved with Laughter Yoga for a few years and it has really helped me socially. I recommend that everyone try it. It's all over the world. It was created in India by a doctor. You can go read more and search your area for a laughter yoga club here laughteryoga.org. If you still don't feel brave enough to go, then try doing a Laughter Exercises in the mirror. Loin - Look in the mirror and stick your tongue out with your hands up and spread out your fingers. Then do a laughing growling sound. I bet you'll get yourself laughing. Make up your own in the mirror funny face! :lol: :lmao: :cheers: :mrgreen: ...

Already diagnosed, but going through a more formal process for the report. I was booked to have a psychoeducational analysis. Because it is so expensive, I cancelled that appointment, and instead, I booked an ADIR/ADOS interview, which is about 1100 dollars cheaper. That appointment is in just a few days. Now I am wondering though, for those of you who might actually have experience with this SOMEHOW (either yourself, or someone you know, or something you have heard from somone qualified to say in anyway): which is a "better" assessment. I have an A average in school, so my problems are not educational per se. Which one would you suggest I get?? ...

As many of you may know, Facebook has a part where you can say whether you are "Interested In" Men or Women (or both). When I first opened an account I just left that blank (note that I thought I was straight at that point too). Anyway, I've just set it to say I'm interested in men. I got rid of the little message it sends out to the news feeds, so I'm not exactly broadcasting the fact, but I'm not hiding it either. ...

Okay, I'm trying to pack up right now. However, I've got a bunch of my own teeny-tiny business cards, and no idea what to do with them so that they don't get lost. Organization's always my weak point, and once I get overwhelmed by a task (like packing up my room), I tend to get really frustrated and just sort of stop out of protest. Admittedly, I am a lazy person. That's why I postpone things to begin with. However, once I get started, I sometimes get overwhelmed and freeze. That's not me being lazy - once the task is broken down, I can do it. However, right now the business cards and another problem I'm having trying to get access to a shredder have me frustrated, and I can feel myself starting to shut down right now. I know I need to get the job done, though, and so I'm taking a break to ask for help and fuss over sorting out the colorful business cards I have from other people - which are actually sorted in a booklet. For right now, my problem is twofold: 1. What to do abo ...

The Sun

Billy Elliot: With autism The Sun AN autistic Billy Elliot wannabe gets a standing ovation on Britain's Got Talent tonight - and leaves Ant welling up. James Hobley, 11, performs a ballet routine just like actor Jamie Bell's in the hit movie. ... Britain's Got Talent 2011: Austistic James Hobley moves from Got To Dance to BGTUnreality TV all 2 news articles »

Utah's autism rate doubles in six years Salt Lake Tribune By heather may When her son was 22 months old, Laura Anderson said goodbye to a walking, talking, smiling boy and entered the silent world of autism. Over a six-week period, the Ty she knew disappeared and a new toddler appeared, one that stopped ... and more »

Deseret News

Brains of autistic kids still larger at age 4, 5 Visalia Times-Delta The brains of 4- and 5-year-old children with autism are larger than the brains of normally developing children, and the difference probably occurs several years earlier, a new study suggests. The finding is a follow-up to earlier research that found ... Brain Grows Faster in Children With AutismMedscape Utah autism rate doubled between '02 and '08, data showsDeseret News Is there an autism epidemic?Washington Times Fox 13 Now - Salt Lake City -InsideHalton.com all 8 news articles »

Care2.com (blog)

The blogger and the doctor Baltimore Sun If, like me, you don't know much about autism, let me explain where the cosmic justice comes in: One form of the wide-ranging developmental disorder, on the high-functioning, high-verbal end of it, is Asperger's syndrome, which among other things is ... Md. autism doctor's license suspendedLos Angeles Times Autism Researcher has License SuspendedAbout - News & Issues Autism doc who treated kids with castration drug has license suspendedChicago Tribune Care2.com (blog) -The Seattle Times -Sun-Sentinel all 81 news articles »

It was the "mother of all meltdowns" and Laura Anderson has the bruises to prove it.

To me, the most salient aspect of Asperger's Syndrome now that I know what it is and have some experience observing it, is the fact that both sensory input I experience, and making my body produce output, are both garbled. In all the stuff I've read, I haven't seen this discussed in this way. When I listen to someone speak, I get "dropouts" even if all other things are equal and I am concentrating and not distracted by background sensory overload. It's like someone switching a radio on and off sometimes. I have to ask people to repeat what they say, and after the second or third time I get enough of the words to form a mental picture. When someone wants to shake hands as a greeting, I have to look at my hand or I'll miss. I can sort of make eye contact, but doing so does not convey any meaningful information about the other person. I can't "read" what kind of mood the other person is in or anything. When I try to speak, I often know what I want to say, but hear myself saying ...

So at my college there is this anti-abortion group. You can trust them to say outlandish things. This week they had pictures of aborted fetuses (which for some reason had quarters and pencils around to show how big it is). There was a 'bioethics' group that revealed 'similarities' between abortion and the Holocaust, Rwanda, etc...Despite being pro-life except in severe need, I thought how great it would be if I made a sign protesting them since I do not like their message, and made a sign using a piece of engineering paper and a cardboard back which read 'Goebbels Smiled Today' (they minimalized it greatly) I put on a red tie, a white shirt, and black pants and shoes, and was more than ready to sling some Horst Wessel references all over the place. But a friend said that they WANT to be challenged, so I decided to text my friends to see if it was appropriate. Meanwhile there was a "Free Speech Board" set up by them, which had a group of people who have the same penmanship try ...

Why is there a general belief that if you have one then you can't have the other? And why the the sympthoms say the basically the same? I don't see why someone couldn't have all the sympthoms of both, someone could have all the sympthoms of aspergers and be a paranoid schizophrenic and I don't see any inherent contradiction. I ask because I see so much of myself in disorganised schizophrenia lately, and autism doesn't explain some of my episodes of extreme confusion. ...

Hi, I'm a 23 year old guy from the Netherlands. Got diagnosed in October 2010, so I suppose that's late in comparison with others. I've also been diagnosed with ADD, and PTSD earlier this year (January, March.) So I have just suffered through 7 months of group therapy learnt a lot, but nothing that really helps me with the issues I have. In short I've had a pretty shit life thus far, and I really want to turn it around. Be more then a depressed hermit. I've started to experience emotions, other then those associated with negative ones, shortly after the diagnosis of AS. It's pretty run of the mill I suppose, my issues range from mind blindness, to being an insecure emotional wreck. And then we have the tragic story of me being hopelessly in love with someone, whom I also suspect of having AS, or at least something on our lovely spectrum. As it happens she is currently also the only person I feel safe around. I've ever felt safe around. Which is important to me as I'm not scar ...

My learned friend has put before us a definition of faith as the conscious acceptance of a proposition grounded at least in part in emotion or an incomplete body of evidence. While I must agree that the subset of credence which is faith is NOT conviction based on a concatenation of well-formed syllogisms, I must differ from his assumption that faith involves a decision to accept. I freely acknowledge that many in the broader fold of Christianity indeed emphasize decision, but this no more impacts the prime Christian sense of faith any more than the claim not infrequently made that one can arrive at the primes of Christian theology through reason. Both can be shown to be at the least unscriptural. And yet it would be misrepresenting the truth to say that decision is not involved. Many if not all of us in the Abrahamic traditions may - nay, MUST - agree that MEN are not MENS. We are admonished, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and wit ...

I often sing to myself and talk to myself. Often I don't know what I am saying but enjoy singing strange songs/noises. Does anyone else do this? ...

I just had a sort of...conversation with someone on YouTube. I disagreed with someone's opinions, didn't quite understand what they meant, and went off and commented on the things she had said, first exclaiming my confusion over how she seemed to hate this vocalist big time. Well; I'll show the "conversation" and you can see my problem. Sorry, the conversation's topic is ridiculous. I do listen to a lot of bad music. I hope you can see past that. The person: "she sounds HORRIBLE she cant keep the timing she keeps gasping for air.....-.- HATE THIS " "People like her should NOT sing live.....ESPECIALLY songs not written for them and most DEFINITELY not in her vocal range....." Me: "Are you serious? Have you seen Amy Lee's live performances of Going Under? She often does worse than this. I'm not saying she's a bad singer, I do prefer her vocals to Carly's, but Carly is no worse than Amy vocally. " The person: "u have got to be kidding me, there is differe ...

Do you calculate things in percentages (like L from Death Note, for make an example)? In past i did it a lot, now i do it less. ...

I love writing! I enjoy doing research; and, when I can, I do some fiction, too. But UGH!!! I HATE math!!! I mean, I have been reading books since I was four...but I took Remedial Math in 10th Grade. I tried taking Math in Community College, and got a 67. If I see fractions one more time, I'm gonna crack! To put it in the most manly and scientific way possible, Math is ICKY-POO. ...

If you don't know, you can check here: http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/. Just enter your birth year where is says "create calendar", then find your birthday on the calendar it creates for you. I was born on Monday. ...

Brain Grows Faster in Children With Autism Medscape May 6, 2011 — The brains of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are larger than those without autism, a difference that appears related to increased rates of brain growth before the age of 2 years, a new imaging study shows. ...

Virginia Governor Signs Autism Insurance Reform Into Law PR Newswire (press release) RICHMOND, Va., May 6, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- This afternoon, the Virginia Autism Project joined families and communities in Virginia in applauding Governor Robert McDonnell in signing House Bill 2467 and Senate Bill 1062, which will become law ... and more »

Deseret News

Utah autism rate doubled between '02 and '08, data shows Deseret News But it is anyone's guess as to what caused her 14-year-old autistic son to throw a fit earlier this week. She thinks it could have been the chicken nuggets. They weren't his favorite brand. Then again, it could have been a slight change in his normal ... Is there an autism epidemic?Washington Times Utah's autism rate doublesSalt Lake Tribune Alternative autism treatments discussedInsideHalton.com all 6 news articles »

PLANS have been put forward for a new rehabilitation hospital to be built on the outskirts of Wiveliscombe .

Watch the press conference live on UStream on Tuesday, May 10th at EDT.Channel: www.ustream.tv/channel/ebcala. We'll remind you. Investigators and Families of Vaccine-Injured Children to Unveil Report Detailing Clear Vaccine-Autism Link Based on Government’s Own Data Report Demands Immediate Congressional Action...

New York Daily News

With Budget Unveiling, Bloomberg Draws the Battle Lines WNYC "We are forced to do the best we can with what we've got. The state has shifted the burden from them to us." Following the unveiling of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's final budget, the battle lines are now drawn between the mayor and City ... Bloomberg to cut more than 6000 NYC teaching positionsCNN International Bloomberg's $65.7 Billion New York City Budget Proposes 6000 Teacher CutsBloomberg NYC Mayor's Budget Would Cut 1 Out Of 12 TeachersNPR Brooklyn Daily Eagle -Patch.com -The Associated Press all 331 news articles »

For the first time in three months, the unemployment rate for Americans with disabilities eased somewhat in April, the Department of Labor said Friday.

A disability services provider in Maine is headed to jail after she over-billed the state's Medicaid program by more than $4 million to pay for her children's nanny, trips and other expenses.

A new paper highlights the issue with geriatric populations in autism. At present, one of the major challenges is that the majority of the currently older individuals with ASD has not received a formal diagnosis of ASD, and this would be dif?cult to establish using the currently recommended diagnostic assessments, because for many of them, [...]

I am working on getting a iMac G4 to boot into the OS, or reinstall an OS. I have MacOSX 10.4.11 installed however it is not booting into the OSX. It wont install the OS from the DVD. Disk Utility is saying that there is a "invalid node structure". How do I fix this? ...