Asperger\'s Syndrome When a Parent, Sibling, Loved

Asperger's Syndrome

When a parent, sibling, loved one, a friend, a teacher, a neighbor, or just a casual acquaintance of a person with Asperger's syndrome wants to know more about the specifics of this health problem, one of the most often quoted and referenced authorities to turn to is Dr. Tony Attwood. That's because Attwood is the author of several books on the subject - notably the high respected book, Asperger's Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professions - and is a practicing clinical psychologist with more than 25 years' experience treating individuals with Asperger's syndrome. Attwood also works with families of persons with Asperger's (also called Asperger) syndrome, and, importantly, also presents strategies for dealing with the problem and its manifestations.

What is Asperger's Syndrome (AS)?

Hans Asperger of Austria began to recognize this disability in 1944, but it did not become an item of medical interest in the English-speaking community until a paper was published in the 1980s, opening eyes and doors to understanding AS.

It is considered a disorder at the higher end of the autistic continuum, but it also very misunderstood by those outside the medical profession. Children with AS are "typically viewed as eccentric and peculiar" by their classmates, according to an article in Intervention in School & Clinic (Williams, 2001). The AS child's social skills tend to be inept; this often causes a cruel response from their classmates and peers, according to Ms. Williams. The AS child - most often, boys are victims of AS - lacks understanding when it comes to human relationships and the rules of social convention. AS children tend to be "na ve and conspicuously lacking in common sense...[and] their inflexibility and inability to copy with change causes the AS child to be easily stressed and emotionally vulnerable."

Attwood in his above-mentioned book points out that quite apart from seeming to be mentally deficient, an AS child "may have remarkable long-term memory, exceptional concentration when engaged in their special interest and have an original method of problem solving." Contrasting with those attributes, however, Attwood notes that there can be a "lack of motivation and attention...assessments that indicate specific learning difficulties, and motor clumsiness."

Further, the child may become socially withdrawn as a result of incessant teasing by fellow students in school.

What are some of the signs and symptoms?

Although there is apparently no universal agreement in the precise, consistent characteristics of AS, there are several distinctive patterns show by AS children; for the purposes of this paper, the patterns are provided through several articles found within the voluminous literature on the subject. They are as follows:

1) AS children worry obsessively when they do not understand even minimal change, when whey do not know what to expect, and when they are stressed out (which they are quite easily). 2) Children suffering from AS often demonstrate an inability to grasp the rules of social interaction; [an example (Barnhill, 2001) would be a teacher notes that her student continues to "push rules to the limit" and insists that "ass" is a three-letter word and therefore cannot be a cuss word because they are all "four-letter" words; instead of writing the student off as rude, the teacher should consider that the boy has AS, a developmental disability]; Attwood says "they perceive the world differently from everyone else." 3) The children suffering from AS tend to have a restricted range of interest, focusing on seemingly eccentric things, preoccupied with "odd, intense fixations (sometimes obsessively connecting unusual things)...[and] tend to relentlessly lecture on areas of their interest, ask repetitive questions...[and] have trouble letting go of ideas" (Barnhill, 2001). 4) Children with AS generally show poor concentration skills, very often distracted by internal stimuli; in classroom situations, it's not always that the child's attention is wandering, but rather than he or she is not able to figure out just what is relevant within the class topic or discussion; they withdraw in to an inner world which appears to be more intense than just a daydreaming episode. 5) AS children generally are clumsy, awkward, show poor motor coordination and have a difficult time playing normal games with other children. 6) Academics do not come easily for the AS child; although they generally have average to above-average native intelligence, particularly in verbalizing, they lack the ability to think and comprehend clearly with any degree of consistency. 7) Emotionally, the AS child cannot cope with classroom dynamics and demands; they generally have low self-esteem, are self-critical, and hate it when they make mistakes. They are also prone to depression and they are known to have temper outbursts for seemingly petty reasons.

Making friends is a difficult task for AS children, given their many seemingly odd, unpredictable, bizarre and anti-social behavior patterns. What does Attwood tell parents of AS children to do, as far as selecting a school (quoted from Web site of the Asperger Syndrome Coalition of the U.S.)? "I say to parents, you are an expert on your child, you are an expert on their personality and developmental history. Use your gut reaction to know whether that's an appropriate school. If your senses are uncomfortable, don't go!"

Attwood also was asked if girls - who are a minority in the AS community by a ration of ten boys to one girl - have a different way of expressing the syndrome, and he replied, on the Asperger Syndrome Coalition Web pages: "Girls with this syndrome are more likely to be considered immature rather than odd...thus they can be described as the 'invisible' child, socially isolated, preoccupied by their imaginary world but not a disruptive influence in the classroom." Attwood added that girls, more than boys, are likely to "suffer in silence," a sad condition indeed.