What It's Like on the Autism Spectrum

Intense stories of family with autism spectrum disorder, as submitted by Atlantic readers

James Hamblin  |  theatlantic.com

In The Atlantic print magazine this month, Hanna Rosin tells the story of her son Jacob's diagnosis with Asperger syndrome, in the context of the psychiatric community's recent change in the definition of the disorder to part of what's now known as autism spectrum disorder.

We received a lot of thoughtful responses from readers who have experience with the disorder in their own lives, themselves or their families, about how the diagnosis has affected them, and what the changes in definition mean to everyone. Here are excerpts from some of those stories.

I remember starting home-based behavioral therapy and that three months after... CONTINUE >

—Kammy Kramer; Eagan, Minnesota, USA

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What I still can’t comprehend is how he’ll be able to go on living in a world not designed for him.

It’s the most important thing in his life, so why is it not for everyone else?

I am used to people asking what his savant abilities are, as they assume that all people with autism must have one.

Every parent of a child on the spectrum can tell you about that play date. You watch the other kids, then you watch your kid.

That said, I am fine calling myself either thing, or nothing at all.

Our differences can indeed be key to our success. But the challenges of autism remain real.

Asperger’s: ‘This is our normal’

Giulia Rhodes meets the Cook O'Tooles, a family of five who all have Asperger's syndrome

Jennifer Cook O'Toole and her husband, John, with their children Moira, Sean and Gavin: ‘My way of learning these unspoken social rules is to write them down.’ Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

Giulia Rhodes  |  The Guardian

Maura, nine, is an expert on ancient history. Her brother Sean, six, specialises in the classification of animals. Gavin, the youngest, has an encyclopaedic knowledge of Spiderman – a little less high-brow, but then he is only three.

All three like to hold forth on their chosen subjects – regardless of whether anyone else is listening or, for that matter, speaking. Family meal-times, admits their mother, Jennifer Cook O'Toole, can be quite a headache-inducing affair.

Fortunately, Jennifer and her husband, John, are not averse to delivering impassioned monologues themselves – about, respectively, the history of monarchy and astronomy – if the mood takes them.  READ MORE >>