Your Child and Asperger's Syndrome
You may have been told that your child has Asperger's Syndrome
(AS), a neurobiological disorder this is part of a group of similar
conditions called "autism spectrum disorders". These similar
conditions can have different combinations and different degrees of
severity of similar symptoms. Any two children who receive the same
diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome may have similar behavior patterns
and different skills and abilities. These children with the same
diagnosis of AS may have different terms used to describe them such
as low-functioning, or high-functioning, or autistic tendencies,
and pervasive developmental disorder. Kids who have been diagnosed
as having high-functioning autism often share the same symptoms as
kids diagnosed with AS.
Asperger's Syndrome is often difficult to diagnosis and treat.
Your child may have been misdiagnosed along the way to the
diagnosis of AS.
A Viennese Pediatrician first described the set of behaviors in
1940 that later became known as Asperger's Syndrome, his name was
Hans Asperger. He noticed that children had the following
behaviors: normal to high intelligence and language development,
severely impaired social skills, an inability to effectively
communicate with others, and had poor movement coordination.
Those with Asperger Syndrome typically have onset of symptoms
later than kids with autism. Usually the diagnosis of Asperger
Syndrome is made after age 3, with the majority of kids being
diagnosed between the ages of 5 and 9.
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Sensory perceptions are usually different for those who have Asperger's Syndrome for instance they may hear high-frequency noises that others cannot hear. Hearing can also be distorted to the point of not hearing correctly what is being said and misinterpreting the words that were spoken. Visually sometimes it is difficult to distinguish objects that are in front of them and can be missed entirely by the person, this can make doing things like math difficult.
Social relationships like having friends, and romantic partners are difficult to foster because of their perseverative interests, literal interpretations, and rigidity and conservative personalities. Many individuals who have Asperger's Syndrome long for the experience of friends and romantic relationships.
Asperger'S
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A child with Asperger's Syndrome usually exhibits poor social
interactions with others, exhibit obsessions, have odd speech
patterns, and other peculiar mannerisms. They usually show very few
facial expressions and have difficulty interpreting or noticing
body language expressed by others. They also have an unusually high
sensitivity to sensory stimuli such as to light, sound and touch.
Though individuals with AS can function in society, they generally
are socially immature are seen by others to be eccentric, odd, and
clumsy. Children with AS are usually picked on by bullies at school
because of these behaviors that set them apart from other kids.
As the child grows he or she may show trouble having empathy for
others, and have difficulty dealing with social situations. AS is a
lifetime disorder that with early intervention and treatment can
have a positive outcome.
Your child may show the following signs and have some or all of
these symptoms:
Minimal social interactions with others, inappropriate
interactions with others, repetitive speech that may seem robotic
or scripted, a lack of common sense, difficulty when it comes to
reading, math, or writing skills, an obsession with complex topics
such as music and patterns, average to below-average nonverbal
cognitive abilities, with average to high verbal cognitive
abilities, awkward physical movements, and odd behaviors or
mannerisms.
Where a child with autism usually shows a delay in language
development, kids with AS have good grammatical skills and usually
have an advanced level of vocabulary early on in childhood. Kids
with AS show appropriate age development when it comes to feeding,
dressing and other self-help skills but have difficulty with
attention span, and organizational skills. Kids with AS typically
have normal to high IQs.
Asperger's Syndrome
09/01/2010
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VETERAN runner Sir Christopher Ball should have no problem completing the Great North Run half-marathon to raise funds for an autism charity.
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Famed stealer of NYC subway trains goes rogue, makes off with bus for Queens joyride
In the annals of railway thievery, Darius McCollum is a legend. And like many legends, he had at early start: At age 15, he commandeered one of the New York City subway's E trains and drove it from midtown Manhattan down to the World Trade Center, McCollum has been arrested 25 times for mass transit-related [... ]
Famed stealer of NYC subway trains goes rogue, makes off with bus for Queens joyride
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Autistic children find comfort in specially trained dogs
— Rebecca Heibein worries about the dangers her son could unknowingly stumble into.
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Transit kook arraigned on charges he stole not one -- but
The mass-transit madman who yanked a bus from a Hoboken depot yesterday appears to have stolen yet another bus 21 days ago from the same spot and driven it to Washington D.C., police sources said. Darius McCollum, 45, told officers after his arrest yesterday that he stole another bus...
Transit kook arraigned on charges he stole not one -- but
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