Last year I was a resident advisor on campus and several of my residents that I had were diagnosed with aspergers syndrome. Many people do not know what the condition is and before I knew how to effectively handle those students I performed some research finding out what Aspergers was. I found a very useful website that helped me understand what the syndrome is and how to effectively communicate with those who had Aspergers. This website is http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/brain/asperger.html and in the following paragraphs of my blog it describes what the syndrome is. After learning about Aspergers, I took this knowledge and applied it to my situation so that I could connect with my residents on my floor. This helped me grow as an individual and I know it could also help you if you ever need to interact with someone who has Asperger’s syndrome.
The disorder is named after Hans Asperger, a Viennese pediatrician who, in 1940, first described a set of behavior patterns apparent in some of his patients, mostly males. Asperger noticed that although these boys had normal intelligence and language development, they had severely impaired social skills, were unable to communicate effectively with others, and had poor coordination.
According to the Asperger Syndrome Coalition of the United States, the onset of AS is later than what is typical in autism — or at least it is recognized later. Many kids are diagnosed after age 3, with most diagnosed between the ages of 5 and 9.
AS is characterized by poor social interactions, obsessions, odd speech patterns, and other peculiar mannerisms. Kids with AS often have few facial expressions and have difficulty reading the body language of others; they might engage in obsessive routines and display an unusual sensitivity to sensory stimuli (for example, they may be bothered by a light that no one else notices; they may cover their ears to block out sounds in the environment; or they might prefer to wear clothing made only of a certain material).
Overall, people with AS are capable of functioning in everyday life, but tend to be somewhat socially immature and may be seen by others as odd or eccentric.
Other characteristics of AS include motor delays, clumsiness, limited interests, and peculiar preoccupations. Adults with AS have trouble demonstrating empathy for others, and social interactions continue to be difficult. Experts say that AS follows a continuous course and usually lasts a lifetime. However, symptoms can wax and wane over time, and early intervention services can be helpful.
The residents who had asperger’s syndrome on my floor were a little awkard in their social interactions but this did not stop them from living a normal life. The way that I was able to connect with these students was by asking them about their favorite activities and talking about those until they were comfortable interacting with me. One of my residents was fascinated with singing and downloading YouTube podcasts. When I first met this resident he was very uncomfortable talking to me and would look away and did not know what to say to me. Sometimes he would stutter a bit or get very emotional when something was not going right. I would calm him down when he got in those situations and help him through his problems that he encountered. He really appreciated my help and to this day he still says hi when I see him around campus. I have learned that to deal effectively with Aspergers you need to connect with the students interest and give your full attention to them. Sometimes you need to go a step further and provide them with support when things don’t go as well as they would like. It may seem difficult at first but with a little practice your interactions with students with Aspergers can make a huge difference in their life.
I challenge anyone who is reading this blog to be proactive and learn about Aspergers syndrome today. At some point in time you will probably interact with someone with Aspergers and if you are prepared you can make a difference in their lives. Believe me, they really enjoy it when someone takes time out of their day to see how they are doing and learn about what interests them. The experiences I have had with my residents has changed my life forever and I want to share this same experience with you.