Jan
22
 
Autism | A day in the life of the Schwenker twins, their working mom and dad, and Barkley the dog | Robin Nelson
MARIETTA, Ga.—It’s 6:32 a.m. on a school day in the Schwenker home. Jennifer Schwenker is doing her best to get 7-year-old twin sons Sam and Ben dressed, fed—and diapered—before they head to Garrison Mill Elementary School in Marietta, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta.
Sam happily chirps—but not in words. Ben flits about the kitchen, flapping his hands while singing “Ooaahh” in an uninhibited, angelic voice. Both boys were diagnosed with autism when they were 18 months old, leaving Jennifer and husband Michael bewildered. They’ve read mountains of books and handouts to learn about autism, but daily life is never what they expect.
“Raising autistic children is like finding yourself unexpectedly living in a foreign land,” says Jennifer. “They’re locked deep inside their own world. We can’t understand them, even if part of their brain understands us.”
A large board in their living room displays dozens of simple pictures and corresponding words. “It’s a PECS board, a picture exchange communication system,” Jennifer explains. Since neither boy speaks more than a few words, Jennifer and Michael use the simple pictures to help their sons express their wants and needs.
Read in Full:Â http://www.worldmag.com/articles/16735
 
Last updated: Saturday May 29, 2010, 9:45 AM
BY STEPHANIE AKIN
Symbolically, though, it represents a major milestone on his path from a baby who was sometimes called “retarded” to an independent adult living with autism. In his mother Emily’s words, it is a miracle.
It is also the result of fortunate timing.
Scott could be among the last to benefit from a New Jersey program that helps people with disabilities finance their homes and live on their own. The state program has provided 1 percent interest rates for 33 people since 1998. But it may become a casualty of budget tightening, even as plummeting prices put houses in North Jersey communities within reach, and a growing body of research suggests homeownership offers people with developmental disabilities more fulfilled lives and a chance to play more active roles in their communities.
While other options are available, including mortgage loans available to all low-income families, nothing matches the state program’s low interest rate, which has made a big difference in New Jersey’s high-priced housing market, he said.
Scott reacted to his new status as a homeowner with unconcealed glee.
Read in Full:Â http://www.northjersey.com/news/health/95168869_The_deed_to_a_new_life_for_autistic_man.html
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Last updated: Saturday May 29, 2010, 9:45 AM
BY STEPHANIE AKIN
Symbolically, though, it represents a major milestone on his path from a baby who was sometimes called “retarded” to an independent adult living with autism. In his mother Emily’s words, it is a miracle.
It is also the result of fortunate timing.
Scott could be among the last to benefit from a New Jersey program that helps people with disabilities finance their homes and live on their own. The state program has provided 1 percent interest rates for 33 people since 1998. But it may become a casualty of budget tightening, even as plummeting prices put houses in North Jersey communities within reach, and a growing body of research suggests homeownership offers people with developmental disabilities more fulfilled lives and a chance to play more active roles in their communities.
While other options are available, including mortgage loans available to all low-income families, nothing matches the state program’s low interest rate, which has made a big difference in New Jersey’s high-priced housing market, he said.
Scott reacted to his new status as a homeowner with unconcealed glee.
Read in Full:Â http://www.northjersey.com/news/health/95168869_The_deed_to_a_new_life_for_autistic_man.html
 
Published on May 27, 2010
If you’re doing a happiness project, it’s worth spending a fair amount of time thinking about…unhappiness.
Although it’s helpful to focus on the positive, to count your blessings, and to remind yourself of what makes you happy, it’s also very important to pay attention to what’s undermining your happiness.
Unhappiness, although less pleasant than happiness, is a worthy emotion. Of course, sometimes unhappiness is caused by something we can’t affect – like illness or a job loss – but often it points to places where something isn’t working, but is within our power to change. Maybe your daily life doesn’t reflect your values. Maybe you need to put some distance between you and a happiness leech. Maybe you’re not living up to your expectations for yourself. Maybe you’re not getting enough sleep. (Note: ordinary “unhappiness” isn’t the same thing as “depression,” which is a serious, urgent condition that requires expert intervention.)
When I was making the decision to switch from law to writing, I was prompted to act by unhappiness – unhappiness inspired not by working in law, which I enjoyed, but rather by the pain of not pursuing writing. I remember that around that time, I read a line from Juvenal: “An inveterate and incurable itch for writing besets many, and grows old in their sick hearts.†A sick heart! This resonated with me so deeply that I knew I had to give writing a shot as a career.
So ask yourself – right now, what’s an obstacle to your happiness? Or to think about it another way, if you could wake up tomorrow with an issue magically resolved, what would you choose? (A factor in your own life, not global warming!) It might be big, it might be small.
When you think about unhappiness, push yourself to be specific. If your answer is, “I hate my job,†try to pinpoint the problem. Are you bored? Do you dread your commute? Think the work is of no social value? Have conflicts with your boss or a co-worker? Find it constantly encroaching on your private life? Frantic with the fear of losing your job? Feel unappreciated? Etc.
Read in Full:Â http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-happiness-project/201005/happiness-question-whats-obstacle-your-happiness
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Published on May 27, 2010
If you’re doing a happiness project, it’s worth spending a fair amount of time thinking about…unhappiness.
Although it’s helpful to focus on the positive, to count your blessings, and to remind yourself of what makes you happy, it’s also very important to pay attention to what’s undermining your happiness.
Unhappiness, although less pleasant than happiness, is a worthy emotion. Of course, sometimes unhappiness is caused by something we can’t affect – like illness or a job loss – but often it points to places where something isn’t working, but is within our power to change. Maybe your daily life doesn’t reflect your values. Maybe you need to put some distance between you and a happiness leech. Maybe you’re not living up to your expectations for yourself. Maybe you’re not getting enough sleep. (Note: ordinary “unhappiness” isn’t the same thing as “depression,” which is a serious, urgent condition that requires expert intervention.)
When I was making the decision to switch from law to writing, I was prompted to act by unhappiness – unhappiness inspired not by working in law, which I enjoyed, but rather by the pain of not pursuing writing. I remember that around that time, I read a line from Juvenal: “An inveterate and incurable itch for writing besets many, and grows old in their sick hearts.†A sick heart! This resonated with me so deeply that I knew I had to give writing a shot as a career.
So ask yourself – right now, what’s an obstacle to your happiness? Or to think about it another way, if you could wake up tomorrow with an issue magically resolved, what would you choose? (A factor in your own life, not global warming!) It might be big, it might be small.
When you think about unhappiness, push yourself to be specific. If your answer is, “I hate my job,†try to pinpoint the problem. Are you bored? Do you dread your commute? Think the work is of no social value? Have conflicts with your boss or a co-worker? Find it constantly encroaching on your private life? Frantic with the fear of losing your job? Feel unappreciated? Etc.
Read in Full:Â http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-happiness-project/201005/happiness-question-whats-obstacle-your-happiness
 
Star-Gazette • May 25, 2010, 4:50 pm
Pathways Inc. will present Jazzin’ It Up with The Matt Savage Trio 6 p.m. June 5 at the Corning Museum of Glass.
Savage, who was diagnosed with a form of autism at age 3, is an accomplished and award-winning jazz pianist and composer, according to a news release. At age 6, he taught himself to read piano music and soon discovered his love of jazz, the release says.
He has performed professionally worldwide, made numerous television appearances and released several albums, both as a solo performer and as part of the trio, the release says.
In 2006 at age 14, Savage was featured on a CNN report about the human brain in which he was described as a prodigious savant, the release says. He has also appeared in several documentaries about savants, according to the release.
The public is invited to this fundraising event. The cost is $60 each or $450 per table of eight and includes hors d’oeuvres, dinner and the presentation, the release says. A cash bar will be available.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.pathwaysforyou.org. For more information, call Tammy at (607) 937-3290 or send e-mail to thallgren@pathwaysforyou.org.
Source:Â http://www.stargazette.com/article/20100525/NEWS01/5250335/1113/
 The Jazz of Matt Savage:
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Star-Gazette • May 25, 2010, 4:50 pm
Pathways Inc. will present Jazzin’ It Up with The Matt Savage Trio 6 p.m. June 5 at the Corning Museum of Glass.
Savage, who was diagnosed with a form of autism at age 3, is an accomplished and award-winning jazz pianist and composer, according to a news release. At age 6, he taught himself to read piano music and soon discovered his love of jazz, the release says.
He has performed professionally worldwide, made numerous television appearances and released several albums, both as a solo performer and as part of the trio, the release says.
In 2006 at age 14, Savage was featured on a CNN report about the human brain in which he was described as a prodigious savant, the release says. He has also appeared in several documentaries about savants, according to the release.
The public is invited to this fundraising event. The cost is $60 each or $450 per table of eight and includes hors d’oeuvres, dinner and the presentation, the release says. A cash bar will be available.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.pathwaysforyou.org. For more information, call Tammy at (607) 937-3290 or send e-mail to thallgren@pathwaysforyou.org.
Source:Â http://www.stargazette.com/article/20100525/NEWS01/5250335/1113/
 The Jazz of Matt Savage:
 
26 May 2010 by Eugenie Samuel Reich
WHEN Peter Pan lost his shadow, he was still recognisable, even though most of us find shadows help us to identify objects. Children with autism, however, appear to regard the dark shapes as more of a distraction.
There is evidence that people with autism process images differently, including finding it harder to decode facial expressions. To investigate how autism affects recognition of objects in general, Umberto Castiello of the University of Padua in Italy and colleagues compared the ability of 20 children with autism and 20 children without the condition to recognise objects drawn with and without shadows.
They found that the children with autism named objects without shadows slightly faster than neurotypical children, but were more than 10 per cent slower at naming objects with shadows. “The presence of shadows dramatically affects the ability of autistic individuals to recognise visual objects,” says Castiello.
Read in Full:Â http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20627615.100-shadows-open-window-into-the-autistic-mind.html
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26 May 2010 by Eugenie Samuel Reich
WHEN Peter Pan lost his shadow, he was still recognisable, even though most of us find shadows help us to identify objects. Children with autism, however, appear to regard the dark shapes as more of a distraction.
There is evidence that people with autism process images differently, including finding it harder to decode facial expressions. To investigate how autism affects recognition of objects in general, Umberto Castiello of the University of Padua in Italy and colleagues compared the ability of 20 children with autism and 20 children without the condition to recognise objects drawn with and without shadows.
They found that the children with autism named objects without shadows slightly faster than neurotypical children, but were more than 10 per cent slower at naming objects with shadows. “The presence of shadows dramatically affects the ability of autistic individuals to recognise visual objects,” says Castiello.
Read in Full:Â http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20627615.100-shadows-open-window-into-the-autistic-mind.html
Jan
22
 