I went for an updated eye test at the opticians today and had a most interesting discussion. Read the rest of this entry »

Reading an article on emotional incest I came across some interesting inter-generational dynamics. Emotional incest was more prevalent in parents with their own challenges and the impact on their children seemed to have some interesting implications for social-emotional interaction patterns in their children. Could parents of kids diagnosed with ASD be more at risk of emotional incest which in turn exacerbates issues commonly identified with adults with Asperger’s? Read the rest of this entry »

With the new government proposal to phase out incandescent light bulbs, what about those on the autism spectrum with the visual perceptual processing challenge of Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome who struggle to concentrate, read and learn under fluorescent lighting? Read the rest of this entry »

More and more books are now looking at Catatonic episodes in those on the autistic spectrum. Read the rest of this entry »

When a man who even the prosecutor’s agree never fired a shot in anger is charged with attempted murder, then I guess we can only imagine the lovely staff of Guantamo must have been playing tiddly winks over hot chocolate with David Hicks these last 5 years. Read the rest of this entry »

In Wales, the English ignorantly renamed Welsh villages, towns and cities with all manner of Anglicizations and titles which swept over the rich native Welsh history of these places. The subtle but pervasive inherent racism of these policies was finally addressed and amends were made, replacing all new signs with bilingual ones which respectfully returned history to it’s public place. And tourism as well as cultural education is richer for it. Shamefully, Australia has little intention of doing anything so enlightened or respectful. Read the rest of this entry »

A friend dropped by yesterday and I my medication hadn’t yet kicked in. I’m usually pretty manic last thing at night and first thing in the morning (yes, would drive many people nuts!). But I drink Lemon Balm tea, which is a muscle relaxant and makes me pretty laid back, quite mellow. The result? Mellowmania. Read the rest of this entry »

Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) used to be associated with orphans in Romanian orphanages, the battered, neglected and abused children of some disturbed or addict mothers or children given up for adoption. But what if, like autism, RAD is actually a spectrum? Today, the causes of RAD are far more diverse Read the rest of this entry »

Imagine a world where television programs showed real diversity. A world where ‘normality’ on every level had a multitude of faces, not one, where a range of cultures, perceptions, experiences, looks and interests were represented and you went away feeling informed, inspired but also included and an equal and respected part of publicly represented social diversity. Read the rest of this entry »

I am speaking in August in New Hampshire and found one of my co-presenters is Jamie Burke so looked him up. I so enjoyed reading of Jamie’s progression from facilitated, typed communication into functional, interactive speech, that I really felt compelled to share it Read the rest of this entry »