Relias

Archive for the ‘#ActuallyAutistic Self-Advocates’ Category

Asparagus Syndrome: The Newly Gourmand Life of an Impossibly Picky Eater

Last week, I burned the lasagna. I remember opening the oven, full of anticipation and nervous excitement, only to have my hopes dashed on the rocks at the sight of the undercooked noodles and scorched earth-colored Parmesan cheese. Was it the glass baking pan? Should I not have halved the...

The Challenge of Vocational Rehabilitation Programs for Individuals on the Spectrum

As individuals on the spectrum, we're different. We try to conform to the mold. Yet no matter how hard we work, it's not good enough for the neurotypical (NT) world. The agencies that are supposed to serve the disabled can't assist us because we don't fit in with their usual population. When...

Support that Really Works – LifeMAP Coaching for Adults with Asperger Syndrome

Toni (name changed) has lived alone for most of her 63 years, plagued with a nagging sense of hopelessness and never enough money. With no family supports to speak of, she often felt utterly alone. Her tiny government-subsidized apartment used to be crammed floor-to-ceiling with old books, papers,...

Believe

My journey to the Boston Marathon started long before I committed to run the best-known race in America. It began on a particularly low Saturday in November 2007. Our family had relocated to New Hampshire less than a year earlier, and although he had been officially diagnosed with Autism and was...

Four Faces of Overstimulation

The word “overstimulation” is not listed in standard collegiate dictionaries. In the lives of people with Asperger Syndrome, however, this little-recognized form of stress reigns supreme. The ideas in this article are drawn from my own experiences – both living with Asperger’s and...