L.A. Asperger Syndrome Parents' Support Group Home Page

Special Guest Speaker on November 12

The Official Home Page^* of the

Los Angeles Asperger Syndrome Parents’ Support Group.

We – the Los Angeles Asperger’s Syndrome Parents’ Support Group – are a group of parents, relatives, guardians, and care-givers interested in helping our children, relatives, and others having Asperger’s Syndrome (AS), because of the way in which it affects our children and our own lives. We also talk about similar problems, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), high-functioning autism (HFA), Pervasive Development Disorder-NOS, Non-Verbal Learning Disorder, Semantic-Pragmatic Disorder, and Hyperlexia. [Despite our constant, insistent, and unwelcome lobbying and nagging, the DSM honchos and honchas haven’t accepted the categories of “nerd,” “dweeb,” “wonk,” and “geek,” but we discuss them, too. :-)]

We meet monthly to discuss these issues, either for general discussions or discussions with invited experts. It’s always on the second Wednesday of each month, always from 7 to 9 p.m., always at the Julia Ann Singer center. Please join us!

Monthly Meeting:

This month, we’re having a general discussion.

Who’s speaking: all who attend (if they want to).

What: whatever you want.

When: Wednesday, October 8 from 7 to 9 p.m.

Where: the same old place. The Community Room at the Julia Ann Singer Center, 3200 Motor Ave. (Los Angeles, 90034) between National and Pico, 1/2 block North of the Santa Monica (10) Freeway underpass. For directions, click the link: there are maps there.

Why: because we love you!

In November, we’re having a special meeting, for both Parents and Young Adults or Teens:

“Preparing to be Nerdy Where Nerdy is Cool:

College Planning for Students on the Autism Spectrum.”

Lars, Perner, Ph.D.

at the usual time, in the usual place (see above) on November 12.

Dr. Perner is a professor at the USC Marshall School of Business and also an adult with Asperger Syndrome. He will share information on college planning for teens with AS and related disorders.

Please bring teens or young adults with AS to this meeting.

Mark your calendars and hire that sitter! Our next meeting after the upcoming one is on November 12. After that, our last 2009 meeting will be on December 10. Assuming that 2009 isn’t going to be called off, our January meeting is on the 14^th.

All parents are welcome. Drop-ins are welcome. This is not a members-only group. In fact, there is no membership list – and no fees. (We are, however, considering a secret password.)

ASPIES_LA is an on-line discussion group under the aegis of Yahoo. If you want to join, contact me at jdevine@lmu.edu. There hasn’t been any real discussion yet, but as we add new members, we hope that the discussion will take off. Please join and contribute! Your humble web-master somehow had the job of moderating this group dumped on his shoulders and would appreciate it if someone else could take over.

Notes:

Ø Unfortunately (alack and alas!), we cannot provide childcare. Please do not bring your children and teens to the meeting (unless it’s noted otherwise in our announcements), since it may interfere with the ability of adults to talk to each other. (Adult children are of course welcome.)

Ø Teachers and mental-health professionals are also welcome. (Reporters & researchers: please click here .) Note that this group is not primarily aimed at those with Asperger’s themselves (though they are welcome to attend). For more information on this, see our FAQ sheet.

Ø Everything said at our meetings is kept in confidence, while our e-mailing list is totally secret.

Ø The organizers of the group are Jim Devine and Fran Goldfarb. Call us for information about Asperger’s Syndrome or about our support group at 310/543-5064. [This is our home phone. Call only after 7 a.m. and before 9 p.m., please.] We have e-mail at: jdevine@lmu.edu (Jim) and beadsme@verizon.net (Fran). Please use the word “Asperger” in the subject line, so that it’s easier to separate your wheat from the chaff of spam.

Announcements:

1. Do you want to know what the major-party presidential candidates think about disabilities? See http://www.aapd.com/News/election/peac2008.php

2. The Help Group has a new After-School Social Skills Groups “Kids Like Me.” Click here to see the flyer. You must have Adobe Reader to read it. It seems good for kids with AS.

3. Addressing the challenging traits found in children with autism through the art of ballet is UCP’s East of the Sun West of the Moon Ballet Workshop. The revised flier can be seen here.

4. Ventura Asperger’s County Group.

5. Relationship Development Intervention.

6. Santa Clarita Group.

7. Spectrum Program.

4. Ventura County Group: A new group for teens and young adults with Asperger Syndrome or high-functioning autism – the Asperger Support for Adolescents Plus – has been created in Ventura County. Contact Troy or Irene at vcasap@roadrunner.com for more information.

5. RDI: In February of 2005 we had a Guest Speaker, Linda Andron-Ostrow, L.C.S.W. of FACT: Focus on All-Child Therapy talking about “The ABC’s of RDI™ (Relationship Development Intervention).” A lot about RDI can be found at http://www.connectionscenter.com/default.asp. The goal of the RDI Program is for each person on the autism spectrum (whether they are considered “low” functioning or “high” functioning) to be excited about expanding their world, rather than to be afraid of it. RDI focuses on what motivates people on the autistic spectrum to develop relationships. The RDI Program is a parent-based, clinical treatment program designed to address the core deficits of autism which impact social communication, relationship building, motivation, critical thinking, abstract language comprehension, problem-solving and executive functioning. Often called the “missing link” in treating persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders, RDI is a powerful step-by-step, growth model based on typical development and the most current research by world experts in autism. [This text is borrowed from http://www.autismnsw.com.au/rdi.asp.] Copies of the slides for this talk can be downloaded by clicking here.

6. Santa Clarita Group. ASA-LA Santa Clarita Autism/Asperger’s Network (SCAAN)

A non-profit organization that offers support group meetings, monthly newsletter, social and educational events.

We are affiliated with the Autism Society of America’s Los Angeles chapter.

Support group meets at 9:00am on the third Wednesday of each month (except December) at North Los Angeles County Regional Center’s Santa Clarita Valley conference room, 28470 W. Avenue Stanford, Suite 100, Santa Clarita.

Evening meetings are also held; call for details.

Contact: Victoria Berrey at 661-297-8381 or vberrey@comcast.net

In the future, I will try to add the all web-sites of our speakers to the links page.

7. Spectrum Program:

The “Spectrum Program” at New Roads School in Santa Monica may be right for your child with Asperger’s. Click here for more information.

ARTICLES:

Janet Hobbs suggested this article by Kathie Snow of “revolutionary common sense” on IEPs as being of interest.

An article on social skills by Dan Coulter. For more of his articles, see his web-site at http://home.att.net/~coultervideo/articles.htm.

An interesting article on AS, by Michael McCroskery, complete with links: Asperger’s Syndrome: A Developmental Puzzle (click here ). Also, here’s a short discussion of Michael’s symptoms. More articles are welcome! (Michael McCroskery is an adult with AS. He currently is working as an online advocator in trying to promote the awareness of Asperger’s. Michael can be reached at MrPolisci@aol.com .)

Useful Material by Fran Goldfarb (beadsme@verizon.net):

Fran wrote a short book for our son Guthrie (when he was about 15) on how to fly on an airplane by himself. It may be a useful template for others. Click here if you have Adobe Reader. If you can read Microsoft Publisher files, click here.

A Letter to a camp counselor or teacher about a child with Asperger’s. This one’s a classic!

Articles by Fran (beadsme@verizon.net) from the Village Glen Voice:

A book report on Medications.

On the California Department of Education .

On the Regional Center for the Developmentally Disabled.

On IEPs (Individualized Education Plans).

An article by Jim Devine (your humble web-master), the “Asperger Chronicles.” A revised (and shorter!) version of this essay has appeared in the book Our Journey Through Asperger’s Syndrome and High Functioning Autism: A Roadmap, edited by Linda Andron (Jessica Kingsley Publ.)

Crucial Disclaimers: We are friends of the Jay Nolan Community Services, the national and Los Angeles Autism Society, MAAP (More advanced individuals with Autism, Asperger’s syndrome, and Pervasive developmental disorder), and OASIS (On-Line Asperger’s Syndrome Information & Support). But they are in no way responsible for anything we do. Nor are we responsible for them!

This web-page and its sub-pages are designed for educational purposes only. The contents of this web-site are not medical, legal, technical or therapeutic advice and must not be construed as such. The information contained herein is not intended to substitute for informed professional diagnosis, advice or therapy. Visitors should not use this information to diagnose or treat Asperger’s Syndrome or related disorders without also consulting a qualified medical, psychological, or educational professional.

Please e-mail me at jdevine@lmu.edu if you have any questions or comments -- or if you want to be put on our e-mailing list. (Note: this mailing list only makes announcements about our meetings, so that out-of-town folks won’t be interested. It’s not a discussion group list-server.) If you want to add something to our web pages, please send them to me.

* Don’t be fooled by any cheap imitations! This is the real thing, folks.!

This page revised by Jim Devine, on 12 September 2008. It was deliberately kept simple (no Java, etc.) so that anyone’s browser can read it – and also because I lack the skills to add bells and whistles.