Depression and anxiety are both major problems in America. Teenagers are hit especially hard with both as they are going through physical, mental, and emotional changes that come with puberty. It is important to be able to at least recognize some of the symptoms of depression and anxiety so as to know when to speak to a professional health care...[ read more ]

By Catherine H. Knott, Ph.D. The desire to advocate for one’s child comes naturally to most parents – as naturally as a protective instinct comes to a mother grizzly bear seeking to defend her cubs and forage food to feed them. Parents today operate in a complex world that includes medical and legal  bureaucracies much more difficult to navigate than...[ read more ]

It is important not to minimize the amount of experience and time with horses needed to use horseback riding as therapy; the goals should include creating a real and empathetic bond with at least one horse, and strengthening nonverbal communication skills with people as well as animals by practicing these skills and using them frequently in situations where these nonverbal...[ read more ]

TAKE THE RIGHT MAP: LEARN HOW TO COMMUNICATE IN THE SYSTEM You may think of yourself as a good communicator, a gifted conversationalist, or a friend to all, but none of these attributes will help you navigate a bureaucracy if you do not know their rules. Not knowing the appropriate forms that communication takes to be effective in a bureaucracy...[ read more ]

If you want to find a summer camp or boarding school program for children with Asperger, try: http://www.talismancamps.com If you want to buy computer software that helps children with Asperger’s, try: http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger Choose Help Asperger's Treatment Helpful Websites: Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism Association PO Box 475, Roslyn Heights, New York 11577 http://www.ahany.org/index.htm AHA is a coalition of parents...[ read more ]

Talisman Academy - School for Asperger's Students Talisman Academy is a residential academic alternative for adolescents and young adults ages 12 to 20 with Asperger's Syndrome, high-functioning autism, and similar spectrum disorders. We focus on improving social awareness and interaction, independence, and academic self-motivation. In addition to specialized classroom time, our small learning groups (8 or 10 students and 2...[ read more ]

Hans Asperger published in 1944 the first description of what has become known as "Asperger's Syndrome." He described a pattern of behavior known as "autistic psychopathy" that included a difficulty feeling empathy, forming friendships, one-sided conversation, a tendency to become obsessively interested in a subject or interest, and some clumsiness of movement. Asperger called the children with these behaviors "little...[ read more ]