review of Phyllis Wheeler's ebook, Nurturing Your Asperger's Child

Lately I have been praying for the Lord to give me some fresh strategies for my Aspie son regarding diet, socialization, anger management and schooling. Even the niggling fear of bullying that he has already started to experience. And yesterday I learned of a website, http://www.phylliswheeler.com/CuringAutismBlog and of Phyllis Wheeler's e-book, and found some of my questions answered, plus a way to learn even more.

Written from a Christian perspective and yet with the wisdom and intuition of an articulate mother, Phyllis shares her considerable experience with Autism and Asperger's in particular. She shares about three of her children with an Asperger's diagnosis, one of whom she feels has the ADD and social challenges mimicking Asperger's but more due to attachment disorder than true Asperger's. She also discusses her brother, who was diagnosed with classic autism in his youth, but who now lives independently. She is a natural authority on strategies and resources and management skills for the peculiar needs of these kids, particularly how to maintain their self-esteem when the world seems set against it.

What struck me more than anything was her depth of understanding for the condition itself. Her explanations of the seemingly insignificant challenges these kids face gave me several ah-ha moments, such as her discussions on eye contact, small talk and discomfort in group settings. It gave me reference to relate to my son, since I have struggled with these most of my life. Her methodical approach to overcoming these through repetitive role playing and neurological connection-building gave me great hope. I attest to the truth of this method, since i unconsciously followed these strategies on my own life and have overcome two out of three. I am still uncomfortable in group settings. ;)

The list of suggested reading gives me a springboard to pursue further the ideas she set forth. I had heard of Caroline Gray's Social Stories work, but I didn't know that Gray also addresses bullying. I have connected with a yahoo group on homeschooling with Aspie kids thanks to Phyllis's suggestions. She recommends strongly considering homeschooling at the ages of 12-14 when bullying reaches its peak during adolescence. My husband and I have discussed this idea in the past, and this gives me the courage and pathway to pursue it further.

I am thankful for this little e-book, and plan to share it with my husband over the next several days. He works in human services and is familiar with the charts and reward system suggested in the book. Her sample charts were just the model I needed, with all of the examples of reward systems that I feel will work with Andrew. I can't say how valuable this resource has been to me as an undiagnosed adult Aspie, and as a mother.

to order this e-book, go to:
http://www.nurturingyouraspergerschild.com/