Treatment for Asperger Syndrome consists of psychotherapy, special education, behavior therapy and family support. Many children with this disorder go on to finish high school, attend college, and can develop meaningful relationships with family and friends.
It is based upon the writer's extensive clincial experience, and is neither intended to serve as an exhaustive list of all of the possible symptoms, nor as the final word on the subject!
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Preference for sameness / perseveration |
Tendency toward obsessive-compulsive interests / behavior |
Problems in rapidly & flexibly shifting attention; overfocusing / stimulus overselectivity |
ADD – like deficits in atentional deployment |
High stimulation often causes hyperarousal |
There semms to be a need for high stimulation |
Stimulant medication often worsens symptoms |
Stimulant medication often improves symptoms |
Absence of, or less well-developed imagination |
Overly-developed, sometimes aberrant use of imagination |
Seeming lack of preference for, or interest in, social situations |
May be quite social (though atypically so) re: items / subjects of interests |
Preference for concrete objects |
Preference for factual information |
More pronounced deficits in language |
Superficially “normal” language |
Deficits in both lower- and higher-level pragmatics |
Deficits in higher- level pragmatics |
Lack of facility with language and communication may mask other deficits |
Greater facility with lnaguage and communication may reveal other deficits |
More obvious sensory impairment |
More subtle sensory impairment |
Diagnosis more straight-forward / earlier |
Diagnosis – confusing / later |
Can appear will-less (at mercy of autistic symptomatology) |
Can appear willful / volitional re: behavior |
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Deficits less obvious – blinded by their strengths! |
