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What I Have Learned….

What I Have Learned…. In Sixty Four Years of life with Autism. My Background. Diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome in 1995. Spouse also has it. Past chairman ASA National Peer advisory Board, director boards of ASLA and Tucson

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What I Have Learned….

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  1. What I Have Learned…. In Sixty Four Years of life with Autism

  2. My Background Diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome in 1995. Spouse also has it. Past chairman ASA National Peer advisory Board, director boards of ASLA and Tucson Co-Author three books about ASD as well as inspiration for a movie Recent Co-Author of DVD “Autism: The Decision to Drive”

  3. Contact Information…. Jerry: Wholphin48@Hotmail.com Mary: Shaynah@mail.com

  4. The Short Story ( If you have to leave early ) Life as a person with any autism at all can be a real pain in the ----- BUT IT IS WORTH THE EFFORT!!!!

  5. What Makes Anyone’s Life Worth IT? Lots of different experiences: good and bad ones, lots of “firsts”, surprises, failures, highs, lows, pains, pleasures, fears, moments of great confidence etc. It’s no different for me. A good life is not supposed to be easy.

  6. Early Warnings….. A few priceless memories before I was six…..illustrating pre-1954 some “issues” with 1. social awkwardness 2. Social boundaries 3. Overstimulation

  7. But on the plus side….. Two older brothers for role models. Two teachers for parents

  8. Big Mistake # 1 Fall 1955, I am “discovered” as a “local walking calculator.” This talent is believed to be enough to make up for everything else going on. ( According to my second grade teacher there was plenty going on )

  9. To be fair, a good move too… My father helped me to socialize my number skill ( make it something I could share with peers ). He taught me all he knew about sports statistics. If anyone wanted to know his Little League batting average, all he had to was find me wandering lost down the hallway of my elementary school and ask me.

  10. Special Projects can help too.. My father also started me on an interesting geography project in second grade.

  11. Bullying…. 1. It is not appropriate. 2. It is not our fault. 3. We are not always aware of it. 4. We have a right to defend ourselves and seek defense from bullies. 5. Great Resource: Gray’s Guide to Bullying

  12. But remember…. Talent is great but it won’t necessarily “make up” for barriers caused by social deficiencies.

  13. Interest Groups… Bands Teams Cub Scouts, Little League Boy Scouts Sunday School

  14. This is a FACT…. Interest groups, early on, provided some crucial passages… my first friends, my first date, ( and my first illegal beer  ) and helped me feel much less isolated and “hopelessly different”

  15. Appropriate Pets 1. Are durable; large enough to survive handling by our children and able to safely let them know when they are being hurt. 2. Can give and receive affection. 3. Won’t get your children sick. 4. Can provide fascination ( like an ant farm, terrarium with plants and insects or aquarium )

  16. Pets…. Provide unconditional acceptance. Best ones are DURABLE.

  17. Let’s see if my audience….. Can tell whether the following pets are….. Appropriate or Inappropriate

  18. Sports are not for everyone… But we can enjoy lots of individual physical activities or as part of a small group…. I and other peers have enjoyed many such activities…..

  19. Short List of individual/group activities… Jogging, walking, running Bowling, miniature golf, tennis, badminton, cycling, swimming, hiking, skating, fishing, playing catch, self-defense class, weightlifting, modern dance, tumbling, waterskiing, snowman building, bird watching, horse riding

  20. I Must Tell You This… We will outlive you!!!

  21. With That in Mind…. Circles of Support are low-cost, long-term ways to help your child find the support he needs after you are gone.

  22. Typical Adult Issues… Housing Room-mate issues Social Isolation Employment Bereavement Transportation Health Feeling “labeled”, underestimated Too much free time, boredom

  23. Circles of support…. Can be especially helpful with transitions. Life is full of those and they are usually difficult and scary.

  24. Life is Full of Transitions… Moving. Firsts…. Job, date, night away from home etc. Learning to drive or maybe deciding not to try it…. Accepting the loss of a loved and needed person.

  25. The most important transitions… should be made while parents are still alive but that is not always possible. If a circle of support exists, it should include or access people who can help with all kinds of inevitable transitions….

  26. You can’t rehearse everything.. BUT many things you do, you will do lots of times… So it pays for us to learn the best way to do what is done frequently and practice it. I call such a practice a “drill.”

  27. Examples of Drills…. Packing my suitcase. Going to airport. Getting up in the morning. Shopping. Grooming.

  28. A good drill…. The major benefit of any drill is to make something that seems impossible, doable. My peers are often intimidated by situations that require a sequence of actions especially if there are time limits.

  29. The bottom line….. As we age, we autistic people will face the same issues that the rest of you face, just in our own way…. We are more human than anything else we are called!!

  30. If Interested in our books etc. Future Horizons has our books and our movie DVD. 1-800-489-0727 or go to the website… “Your Life is Not a Label” “Autism, Aspergers and Sexuality” “Mozart and The Whale, an Asperger’s Love Story” DVD Movie: “Mozart and the Whale”

  31. Thinking about Driving?? New DVD out …. “Autism and The Decision to Drive” For a preview clip, just google the above title. It will take you to the preview and ( if you want to order it ) to a site where you can do that too.

  32. One last thought…. If our universe has a creator, he must be a little autistic himself…. After all, why did he make the planets spin?

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