The Voice of Heard/Understanding Autism, Part 2

The following is a follow-up of the last blog entry Understanding Autism, The Final Voice.  I thought that I could no longer continue my blog when my internship ended.  But since my writing is considered so good, I learned that I still have access to the blog.  In other words, I can write a new blog entry any time I want to, just not on an everyday basis.

There were a couple of things that I should have mentioned in my last entry.  You may have a basic understanding of autism.  You probably even have witnessed an autistic child in school displaying its effects.  But did you know that there are autistic adults out there who are now leading successful lives?  One autistic man runs an auto repair shop specializing in restoring fine European cars.  Another woman with autism has a Ph.D in animal research and an interesting perspective in animal behavior.       

Some of these people have written books detailing their experiences of growing up with autism.  A few examples include Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s by John Elder Robinson and Thinking In Pictures: and Other Reports from My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin.  I read the former but I haven’t looked at the latter.

I am planning to read a book co-written by Temple Grandin and Sean Barron called Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through the Unique Perspectives of Autism.  In that book, they present “their life stories to explain the unwritten rules and patterns of social relationships” and guidelines for interacting with other people in any type of environment.

Who knows?  Maybe I’ll learn something from these types of autistic fellows.  I know that I might be as successful as they are in the future.