Being a teacher of students on the autism spectrum, and having two adopted sons on the autism spectrum, I feel like I am almost an expert on autism. Not really, but learning "in the field" is an effective, though difficult, learning method. The true expert on living with an autistic child is the parent(s). Only through daily living “in the trenches” can one truly know what life is like with the autistic child.
Autism is a continuum of abilities
Autism is not a "disease" as many would have us believe. It is not something that bad parenting causes, as some would say. Autism is a disorder characterized by a breakdown in communication and sensory processing. The term autism describes a disorder that is on a continuum. The cognitive ability can range from being gifted to being mentally challenged. One of my sons has an IQ of 131, the other has and IQ of 64. Many of my students have had much lower IQ's and one student had one ever higher than the 131 that my son has.
Asperger's Syndrome is a unique form of Autism
Asperger's Syndrome is a form of autism characterized by an IQ that ranges from normal to way above normal. Social and language deficits are the two major characteristics. However, these individuals vary in like manner to the general population. Some are more socially functional than others. Some are more able to process verbal exchanges than others.
An amusing aspect of individuals with Asperger's Syndrome is the tendency to take everything literally. For example, on one occasion my son was with me when a mechanic was taking me home after I had driven several miles in the country to take my car to him to be fixed. He made the comment he appreciated my making it a point to come all the way out there to give him my business. My son later made the comment that the mechanic was hard to understand. I asked him why, and he said, “Well, he talked about a point, but there was nothing sharp there. And, he said we gave him our business, but we didn't give him anything. He is going to give us our car back, isn't he?” He took everything literally.
Another time he heard about the “greening” of the home. He came to me very distressed because green was not one of his favorite colors, and he didn't want to have to paint his room green.
Parenting joys and challenges
Parenting the child with autism can be challenging, and stressful. Parenting the child with autism means broken schedules, interrupted shopping trips when a melt-down occurs, advocating with schools, churches, doctors, and others involved with the child. It means sleepless nights and frantic days. However, looking for the unique traits of an individual, and recognizing the humor in situations make that task interesting and joyful as well. The literal perceptions of the autistic child can lead to many humorous events. The perpetual childlikeness means seeing the world through a different perspective. The literal viewpoint of autism often leads to its own humor. The parent needs to relax and enjoy the child when it is possible, and relax and ride through the rough times as well.
