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Insights

Living Life as a Formal Event

August 18, 2016 Spectrum Women

Ever since I found out about my Asperger’s my life has really changed… Or better said, my perception of life changed. Suddenly everything started to make sense, all the answers I never thought I’d get were just coming and I even found lots of people that spoke my language who were looking for the same answers. It was very enlightening and liberating as most of you who are reading this are already are very much aware of and have gone through the same (or a similar) experience. After feeling engulfed by this wave of energy and excitement, that only such […]

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Friends – Good and True and Preferably Autie by Yenn Purkis

August 2, 2016 Spectrum Women

My childhood and early adulthood was characterised by my friends – either the fact that they were absent or inappropriate or downright dangerous. I never had a peer group. In fact I was so devoid of suitable friends that I found myself taking on belief systems and attitudes just to be accepted by one dodgy peer group or another – revolutionary socialists, criminals, drug addicts – I wanted so much to belong to something that I didn’t seem to mind how negative or unpleasant membership of that peer group might be. I lacked a genuine culture. I felt so isolated […]

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Attack of the Vultures – My Journey With Asperger’s

July 15, 2016 Spectrum Women

Hello. My name is Jaime, and I am a 36-year-old American woman who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) a little over a year ago. That day, April 22, 2015, was the most important day of my life. It was the day that I was finally able to stop pretending to be someone I wasn’t and shine my light out into the world as my authentic self. Before that beautiful day, life had been a horrible struggle. I grew up in the 1980s, when the only children who were seen as ‘mentally disabled’ were the ones who attended special […]

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A Stark Reminder: Autistic in the Air by Dena Gassner MSW

July 6, 2016 Spectrum Women

A few weeks ago, I had a presentation in another state here in the U.S. Those who hear me speak about accommodations know that I always say, “We shouldn’t seek to outgrow our need for accommodations but instead, to grow into them.” I firmly believe that there is a huge bias in that individuals with more obvious conditions (using a cane, wheelchair, etc.) are empowered to maximize their accommodations, however, individuals with invisible differences are set on an early path to seeking the outward appearance of ‘normal’ which means not asking for or getting accommodations. This becomes extremely problematic when […]

Education

From the inside, looking out.

July 1, 2016 Spectrum Women

ASD is for life: just like having grey eyes, or short fingers. We can choose to change these things of course, if we want to; mask them with coloured contacts or long fingernails. But underneath they remain the same, our secret. Our global community accepts that eyes and fingers come in a variety of colours and lengths. We accept that some people are great at Maths and logic; others excel in creative pursuits of art and music. So, why can’t we accept difference in the way people process the world around them? Why must only one way be “acceptable” and […]

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A Day in the Life of Nichole Conolly

June 28, 2016 Spectrum Women

I was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder ( aspergers under the DM-IV) and anxiety as an adult. My parents always suspected something was “different” about me but ASD didn’t really come up in conversations with specialists. Maybe it was because I was a girl or maybe it was because I was able to hold it together at school, so what my parents and siblings saw was totally different to what the teachers saw. I hear this scenario very often on facebook groups and pages that I am a part of. Due to much ongoing support from family and friends, I […]

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IT’S OK TO ASK… by Yenn Purkis

June 29, 2016 Spectrum Women

Independence is not something I am lacking in. I moved out of home at 17, got a job and went to uni. I had some serious difficulties in life and dragged myself out of them through determination, motivation and faith. I now work full-time, own my own home and spend a lot of my free time assisting other people. I pride myself on being able to manage my own affairs. These are all good and laudable attributes but there is something I struggle with – I find it almost impossible to give up control and to ask for help. When […]

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My Life – Sue Abramowski

June 27, 2016 Spectrum Women

My story starts when I was about 4 years old. You see, I’ve always been one of those kids who is a little bit different; who operates in a manner that’s not like that of the others. This became apparent in preschool. While the other kids were obediently listening to the teacher and following instructions, I was off in another world. They were learning their ABCs, and I was in the Little Tikes playhouse, doing my own thing. If they were working on a project, chances are that I was dashing to the carpet, doing cartwheels. My teacher expressed concern […]

General

The Chameleons: Women with Autism

June 19, 2016 Barb Cook

We often hear about autism in men, but rarely in women. SBS The Feed, looks at three different generations of women living with autism and how the stigma of the condition is amplified. We often hear about autism in men, but rarely in women. The Feed looks at three different generations of women living with autism and how the stigma of the condition is amplified by gender. More than 200,000 Australians have autism. It’s diagnosed four times more in males than in females and some experts in the field believe this reflects a failure of diagnostic processes rather than a […]

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COLOUR CODING FOR LEARNERS WITH AUTISM

June 19, 2016 Spectrum Women

COLOUR CODING FOR LEARNERS WITH AUTISM A Resource Book for Creating Meaning through Colour at Home and School By Adele Devine Jessica Kingsley Publishers RRP AU$53.95 print – Footprint Books Review by Barb Cook – Editor-in-Chief – Spectrum Women Magazine Colour Coding for Learners with Autism is a fun and motivational learning tool for children on the autism spectrum. Often visual learners, children on the spectrum will find this book engaging whilst giving them a secure learning environment. The author’s extensive background as a special needs teacher working with children with autism, has allowed her to develop this effective colour […]