Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, 6(3), 2012, pp.141-143.
Publisher:
Emerald
...with an overwhelming sense of isolation. At the age of 28 a diagnosis of autism is added to those of dyspraxia and dysphasia. The impact that autism can have on family carers is clearly summarised as a long, arduous, lonely and silent journey that begins long before any recognition comes with diagnosis.
This is a short personal account from the viewpoint of a family carer of a young man with autism. The author describes the stages of development, the milestones of evidence of delayed or different progress and the attitudes of others as his son grows to adulthood. The compartmentalisation of services and the challenges of accessing appropriate support into adulthood are described along with an overwhelming sense of isolation. At the age of 28 a diagnosis of autism is added to those of dyspraxia and dysphasia. The impact that autism can have on family carers is clearly summarised as a long, arduous, lonely and silent journey that begins long before any recognition comes with diagnosis.
Subject terms:
mental health services, needs assessment, social care provision, stereotyped attitudes, stress, user views, adults, autism, carers, case studies, diagnosis, dyspraxia;
...in which she dedicates the first chapter to defining neuro-diversity. Chapters 2-10 describe, ADHD (and ADD, attention deficient disorder), autistic spectrum conditions such as Aspergers syndrome, high-functioning autism and pervasive developmental disorder – not otherwise specified, dyslexia, dyspraxia (developmental condition disorder), dyscalculia (mathematic disorder), dysgraphia (disorder of written
This handbook is a first reference point guide to the range of neurological differences in neuro-diverse young people and adults, who often are not formally diagnosed as children. To date, most information and support has been for children. This lead author was diagnosed as having dyslexia and ADHD at the age of 33, and had already worked as a dyslexia support tutor prior to compiling this text, in which she dedicates the first chapter to defining neuro-diversity. Chapters 2-10 describe, ADHD (and ADD, attention deficient disorder), autistic spectrum conditions such as Aspergers syndrome, high-functioning autism and pervasive developmental disorder – not otherwise specified, dyslexia, dyspraxia (developmental condition disorder), dyscalculia (mathematic disorder), dysgraphia (disorder of written expression), Tourettes Syndrome, anxiety disorders, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Each chapter describes history, causes and characteristics, the implications for individuals, diagnosis and assessment, approaches and treatments, strategies for providing support and self-support, and closes with a positive statement by someone affected by each condition. The final two chapters entitled ‘the learning environment – teaching approaches for supporting neuro-diversity’ and ‘the working environment – work-place adjustments for neuro-diverse employees’ offer practical advice in a bullet point format to help teachers and employers better their support to neuro-diverse students and employees.
Subject terms:
learning disabilities, obsessive compulsive disorders, Tourettes Syndrome, young adults, young people, ADHD, adults, Aspergers syndrome, autism, autistic spectrum conditions, dyspraxia;