American Asperger's Association
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American Asperger's Association Support Group

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» Chambers of Hope (COH) and American Aspergers Association (AAA)
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jul 27, 2013 1:29 pm by csweepigirl

» Introductions
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» June 4th 2011
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Feb 25, 2011 6:22 am by csweepigirl

» Free Home Speech Practice Home offer
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Feb 19, 2011 2:21 pm by csweepigirl

» Support group meeting and hbot volunteers
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Dec 20, 2010 9:35 am by Dr. Ron

» Favor....Locals..read..please...
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Oct 11, 2010 7:46 am by bondgary009

» Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) is hosting the first of its best practices webinars
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Aug 27, 2010 4:51 am by csweepigirl

» We need to start this website back up again!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Aug 23, 2010 2:33 am by man of a million names

» Group Home Manager is Yelling I Need Help
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Aug 05, 2010 3:10 am by csweepigirl

» Facebook
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Jul 05, 2010 2:27 am by KelleyNNelson

» Support Group Meetings 2011 *EDITED*
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Jun 23, 2010 3:57 am by KelleyNNelson

» community happenings!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Jun 22, 2010 6:01 am by asg_tlm@hotmail.com

» Asperger's (how it is diagnosed and treated)
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jun 12, 2010 4:27 pm by csweepigirl

» What do you do when people look at you by the pills you take vs. the person you are?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jun 12, 2010 4:01 pm by csweepigirl

» Items under your nose that are gluten free, and cheap too!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Jun 09, 2010 5:59 am by KelleyNNelson

» Adam
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Jun 08, 2010 1:19 am by man of a million names

» Looking for friends
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jun 05, 2010 8:51 pm by channing28105

» Maas-Rowe Carillon Questions
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jun 05, 2010 8:51 pm by channing28105

» Video Emails from Dr. Ron
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue May 11, 2010 1:40 am by Dr. Ron

» Ah, it's good to be back.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat May 01, 2010 5:03 am by man of a million names

» 1st Annual Aspergers Volleyball Tournament
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Apr 19, 2010 2:03 am by Dr. Ron

» free event: Therapeutic Recreation Adapted Sailing and Kayak Clinic
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Apr 01, 2010 3:20 am by csweepigirl

» Help! I Seem to be Getting More Autistic!" ARTICLE
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Mar 29, 2010 10:22 am by csweepigirl

» Was this teacher out of line?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Mar 03, 2010 10:31 pm by lovethefish

» OMG THE PLACE IS REMODELED!!!!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Mar 03, 2010 2:38 am by KelleyNNelson

» Got Plates?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Mar 02, 2010 1:19 am by KelleyNNelson

» Local IEP Advocate!! THANKS VAL!!!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Feb 28, 2010 1:16 pm by csweepigirl

» Pinellas ESE advisory board meetings
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Feb 27, 2010 12:31 am by lovethefish

» Dentists who use sedation.. thanks Dr. Ron
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Feb 27, 2010 12:28 am by lovethefish

» Hey GAB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Feb 24, 2010 5:25 am by csweepigirl

» Autism in the news: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A hormone thought to encourage bonding between mothers and their babies may foster social behavior in some adults with autism, French researchers said on Monday.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Feb 18, 2010 7:01 am by csweepigirl

» **********echo*******************
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Jan 31, 2010 11:16 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Any ideas on how to make a gluten regression easier for both child and family?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Jan 06, 2010 9:47 am by csweepigirl

» Hi! Long time no see.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Dec 21, 2009 3:04 am by KelleyNNelson

» Hellooooo? Need some freakin' help here.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Dec 15, 2009 8:50 am by man of a million names

» Cats or dogs? Summer or winter?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Nov 23, 2009 6:47 am by man of a million names

» Mozark and the whale *aspergers movie* on showtime on demand.. SUCKED by the way
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Nov 23, 2009 6:42 am by man of a million names

» Adult Aspergers Syndrome
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Nov 22, 2009 4:07 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Asperger’s Syndrome: A Developmental Puzzle by Michael McCroskery
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Nov 22, 2009 12:22 pm by csweepigirl

» Really Cool Super Awesome Thing! Kim And Kelly You Have To Read This!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Nov 20, 2009 4:24 am by man of a million names

» 2 Articles of Interest Re: Aspergers
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Nov 19, 2009 6:15 am by csweepigirl

» Accidently stubled across some info about meletonin oops!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Nov 10, 2009 2:41 pm by csweepigirl

» Lack of Services for ASD
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Nov 09, 2009 8:04 pm by Dr. Ron

» New and having a hard time
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Nov 04, 2009 3:40 am by lovethefish

» Sorry I haven't been around as much (update)
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Nov 03, 2009 10:53 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Having a hard time again
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Oct 20, 2009 8:35 am by man of a million names

» Important paradox/riddle! Anyone care to help with it?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Oct 19, 2009 10:46 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Follow through or not.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Oct 15, 2009 4:01 am by csweepigirl

» New Pediatrics Autism Study Putting Prevalence at 1 in 91
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Oct 14, 2009 11:45 am by csweepigirl

» Different Directions
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Oct 09, 2009 12:41 am by csweepigirl

» AS is a very difficult diagnosis to make.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Oct 08, 2009 1:47 pm by csweepigirl

» How is everyone?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Sep 21, 2009 9:48 pm by Jerry Graham

» CD to benefit the AAA ~!!!!! Check this out!!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Sep 21, 2009 11:14 am by bassfiddlesteve

» I met Joe Diffie's son!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Sep 20, 2009 8:01 am by csweepigirl

» Anyone feel like helping me smack the crap out of my former boss?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Sep 20, 2009 7:56 am by csweepigirl

» Lazy or Aspergers?? or both?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Sep 20, 2009 5:20 am by man of a million names

» The right thing?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Sep 15, 2009 7:27 am by man of a million names

» Mark Fowler and his wonderful work.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Sep 13, 2009 5:51 am by man of a million names

» A.A.A. RESEARCH STUDY. Do you see any differences between females with Aspergers vs. males with Aspergers
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Sep 10, 2009 1:49 pm by csweepigirl

» What happened?? because I don't know, do you?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Sep 10, 2009 6:24 am by man of a million names

» Haha, Funny URL.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Sep 09, 2009 9:15 am by man of a million names

» Dude! Kim, I forgot to tell you... and maybe anyone else at the last meeting...
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Sep 05, 2009 4:59 am by man of a million names

» My son is making strange noises!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Sep 04, 2009 11:41 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Terrible sound on video
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Sep 04, 2009 9:30 am by man of a million names

» Aspian or Aspergian?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Sep 04, 2009 7:22 am by man of a million names

» If you, or you know someone who needs a BIG/HUGE carseat..
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Sep 04, 2009 12:33 am by csweepigirl

» Just a quick hello
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Sep 02, 2009 7:37 am by man of a million names

» We started the FLDRS process...and here's what we found out so far
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Sep 02, 2009 7:19 am by man of a million names

» Support Groups
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSun Aug 30, 2009 1:31 pm by KelleyNNelson

» (Aspergers) Boy Meets Girl Movie
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Aug 25, 2009 8:13 am by man of a million names

» I give up, with trying to ever just relax, really.. I'm so flustrated!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Aug 24, 2009 9:15 am by man of a million names

» Basic White or Yellow Cake
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Aug 22, 2009 6:33 am by man of a million names

» When did this category get here?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Aug 22, 2009 1:55 am by man of a million names

» Pork Fried Rice
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Aug 20, 2009 11:17 pm by man of a million names

» Why Are The Private Messages Still Disabled????
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Aug 20, 2009 10:48 pm by man of a million names

» Sorry I've been M.I.A.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Aug 19, 2009 6:04 am by man of a million names

» 5Km Run For AS!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Aug 14, 2009 11:30 pm by man of a million names

» Help for a mother.
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Aug 12, 2009 12:01 pm by Dr. Ron

» Aspergers and empathy
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Aug 08, 2009 11:41 am by csweepigirl

» We are the three amigo(a)s!Aanyone care to join?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Aug 07, 2009 12:42 am by man of a million names

» Vaccinations, Red Book, What?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeThu Aug 06, 2009 12:21 am by Dr. Ron

» What is the first step?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Aug 05, 2009 7:14 am by Dr. Ron

» Children who can’t cuddle
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeMon Aug 03, 2009 1:27 pm by csweepigirl

» Challenging popular myths about autism
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Jul 31, 2009 10:59 pm by Dr. Ron

» I NEED your HELP!!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeSat Jul 25, 2009 2:41 am by melissa

» Ok..what do I do? any suggestions..
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeFri Jul 24, 2009 3:53 am by melissa

» Back home!
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Jul 22, 2009 2:10 pm by KelleyNNelson

» Any spanish speakers willing to help an aspie in spain?
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeWed Jul 22, 2009 1:34 pm by csweepigirl

» Gluten Free Simple Bread
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Jul 21, 2009 11:49 am by csweepigirl

» More research (genetics)
Questionnaire I_icon_minitimeTue Jul 21, 2009 11:43 am by csweepigirl


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1Questionnaire Empty Questionnaire Sun Jul 05, 2009 6:59 pm

jjc02d



My Name is Joe
1. How did you hear about the American Asperger's Association (i.e. internet search engine, school, library, doctors office, existing member, etc) and what benefits are you looking to gain from our family?

It was posted on a comment on a USAtoday.com article on AS. I need help with my adult cousin who is 22 and I suspect has AS. See below.


2. Do you or any adult relative, friend, etc. have or suspect you/they have an autism spectrum disorder, for example Asperger's Syndrome? If yes, please share your/their story with us. It will help us to get to know you better, and many of our members will be able to easily relate and bond with you.

First off thank you for your time. I have a serious concern about my 22 year old cousin (I am 27 and live in FL), who lives in NYC with his mother. I have gotten to know my cousin since he lived in the same city (Gainesville, FL) as me from the ages 9 to 15. Back then I noticed he was very strange. He often talked to himself and engaged in strange behaviors, but I always chalked it up to his mother being over protective, moving him all over the United States (in pursuit of love), and his lack of a father figure.

He has never had a friend as long as I have known him and at this point in his life I am the only one who talks to him on any sort of regular basis besides his mom who lives with him. He totally depends on her. He went to college for a couple years (primarily on my encouragement) and has average intelligence, but hated attending school (I believe because he hated interacting with other students) and dropped out when he moved from San Francisco to New York City over a year ago. Since moving he has not gotten a job let alone seriously looked for one. He spends his days doing literally nothing productive to his future.

When talking to him he can converse extensively about a topic (he fixates on things) without a real purpose behind it and most of our conversations are very long, but he talks about nothing. Also when I try to make the conversation interactive he has a very difficult time keeping it going. When I ask him tough questions about his future he often attempts the blatantly change the subject without even acknowledging the question. He is very judgmental of people, especially of those he does not know and often judges people off of things he disapproves of. He can even become unreasonably angry and upset which also can be scary (as if he could cause serious harm to someone). With all this said, he desperately wants to have a meaningful friendship with ANYONE! He longs for this, and clings tightly to any positive interactions he has, but has lacks the empathy to make a friend.

Recently my Mom has suggested that he may have Aspergers disorder. So I have been researching on the net about symptoms of AS and my eyes teared up as I read because I felt I was reading the explanation for my cousins behaviors that I have seen for years. Other things he has done include weird hand movements (I witnessed more as he was a child, but I'm sure he still does), he is OVERLY sensitive to loud noise, temperature, and stimuli, he's clumsy, uncomfortable in his own skin, very little to no confidence and self esteem, wakes up abnormally, has odd skills (being able to tell you the day of the week if given a date and year), weird voice inflection at times, scared of taking risks of any kind, unable to set goals, and occasional starring.

I see him usually once or twice a year. When we are around other people you can tell he tries to hide some of his oddness (but still seems odd), but it comes out a lot more around just me or especially his mom, basically people he his comfortable around. He knows he is weird, but his mom seems totally oblivious to his behavior and still even babies him. She doesn't force him to get a job, let alone do much around the house which I feel has made him much much worse. When I talk to him and ask what he has been up to he often replies, "Just trying to stay calm." He often seems tense and also seems to display some schizophrenia sings (talking to himself, and when confronted denies it) which is really scares with all of the free time on his hands.

Bottom line. The only person he really really trusts is his mom. His mom's word is golden to him. I am pretty much the only other person he holds any sort of real relationship with, but his mom's word trumps mine. The problem lies in that he depends on her for EVERYTHING and she depends on him emotionally (unless she finds a man and then she casts him to the side). Either way she thinks he is an amazing person who can do no wrong. I am afraid if I bring up my suspicions to her she will either not take me seriously or disown me as her nephew. I have no idea how he'd react if I told him, but since he tells his mom everything she will completely form his opinion for him. I need some help on approaching this!! We have other mutual family that knows he has a problem, but I am really the only one he truly trusts. He is genuinely a nice guy, who doesn't swear, drink, or do drugs, but he needs some help.

If I do not do anything I am afraid in the worst case scenario that he will hurt someone or himself sometime in the near future. Due to my other suspicions of schizophrenia, I am extremely worried he may have a break due to him being in his early 20's (I already had one friend who did). In a better, but not by much case, after his mother dies he will become homeless and live on the streets because his lack of being able to get employment. I do not have unrealistic expectations about him, but I feel if he knows that there is a specific problem that he has he will proceed in life in a more positive manner knowing that he is not the only person in the world with this problem, which I think he feels. Please let me know if you have any advice at all.



3. Do you have or care for a child that has or you suspect that they have an autism spectrum disorder, for example Asperger's Syndrome? If yes, please share your/their story with us. It will help us to get to know you better, and many of our members will be able to easily relate with and bond with you. No


4. Do you work in any field with people on the autism spectrum disorder? If so, what do you do? How long have you been in the field? Examples would be a doctor, therapist, teacher, aide, ym/wca employee, caregiver etc... Also, if you are local to the Tampa Bay Area, would you be interested in speaking at any of our informational support group meetings in Pinellas Park? I live in Tallahassee and have been working as a PE teacher for 5 years and have worked with autistic children before.


5. Are you local to the Tampa Bay Area? More specifically the Pinellas County area? If so, would you be interested in attending our twice monthly informational support group meetings in Pinellas Park? After approved, be sure to mark in your profile that you are local so that you will be able to receive emails regarding local information and events. No

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