Autism therapies for people diagnosed as adults?

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Okay, so I just got my diagnosis, what comes next? The clinical psychologist recommended Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) for my social deficits. She said I don't reciprocate well in conversations and need to work on social interactions. Conversations are really tough, especially casual, non-work talk. What are your opinions of ABA for adults?

She also wanted me to do occupational therapy to help me deal with my sensory issues (which are particularly with loud sounds, flashing lights or flickering images, and smells like perfume). Has anybody worked on this and had success with it?

thanks!

In all my research and in actually volunteering with an ABA program, there has been absolutely nothing there that would benefit a self-motivated, high functioning adult. All of it is aimed at young children, low functioning people, or to get cooperation from someone who is not motivated to do treatment.

An acting class would be more beneficial for teaching social interaction, I think.

Hi, I have just been diagnosed there is a week and a half. Several forms of support were discussed during the interview. I must receive written report soon and will take the time to read the recommendations before deciding what kind of help meets my current needs (coaching, support group, reading, etc.)

You said that your therapist spoke about some assistance options for you, but according to you, what are your needs, what kind of help do you need? In what area do you want to be helped? (relationships, work, social integration, organization, etc.)

Don't know. All I got was an appendix at the end of my diagnostic report, a long list of possible places to contact for help, but very few of them looked like they'd be easy to get to, or helpful. A free weekly one-hour visit to a good local counsellor who really understood autism would interest me, but as far as I can ascertain, there's no such animal in my area.

So my method of progressing is basically to wing it. I simply study the condition and compare it with my personal experiences, and occasionally an idea occurs to me that seems worth trying.

It's true - there's little to be done to help an adult autistic. I've reached the opinion, ten years on from diagnosis, that well adjusted adults are better off not knowing. I've tried psychs of various sorts, cbt, neurofeedback and just plain practice but I'm still as maladjusted and isolated as I ever was. Perhaps better adjusted to it, but only in the living with despair sort of mode.

Government allowances, such as:

hiring and workplace understanding
disability pensions if you can't work
other disability services
and whatnot

Another option... make a bunch of money the "old fashioned" way by:

A) Inheriting it

or

B)Stealing it.


Best therapy I've ever found.

Primarily I want to work on social interactions and relationships. I do pretty well at work, except when I have some sort of misunderstanding in how I interpret verbal communication. The tests showed that I do very poorly with understanding verbal communications, especially instructions, and that I don't reciprocate well (so I get stuck on small talk and social "give-and-take"). I like Ettina's idea of an acting class... I rarely get any feedback on whether I am projecting emotions the way I want (I suspect not, since my wife is always asking if I'm angry or sad when I'm not).

first of all, please understand that we live in a primitive age, where it is easier to make people like us undergo all kinds of "training", instead of people coming up with ideas how to best include us most efficiently in the society. With other words, do not stress or worry ahead about what comes next, take some time to get to know yourself now better, given the fact that you finally know what it is you have.

AS, is not a disease, in fact its advantages can be unparalleled compared to neurotypicals. I think you should start slow, practice on your own, before rushing into all these classes that usually aren't always for free, and make you become overwhelmed. Since you were diagnosed just recently, take it slow, one step at a time. Remember, you are unfortunate (like the rest of us), to have been diagnosed with AS in a society that is too limited/weak to integrate us into society to make best use of our strengths. Their loss.

I have a feeling I am going to be doing a lot of winging it too. I am glad I have the diagnosis (yay! I'm not crazy) because now I can start addressing issues that I thought I just had to tolerate, like painful sounds. Some of my coping mechanisms may come from outside counseling, like Ettina's acting class, joining some kind of club to practice socializing, meditating for stress relief, and physical aids for the sensory issues (earplugs/earbuds with music, buying cotton clothes, wearing sunglasses or a hat, etc.)

And who knows, maybe I can talk a therapist who treats children into working with me--maybe some of the same techniques could be adapted for adult use. I know I have maladaptive behavior--maybe the therapeutic community needs to stretch their abilities, same as me. Just having an outsider to point out what is not working or if I'm doing something in a weird way might be beneficial. I am functional in the outside world, but I think I can do better than just "adequate."

I am finding the book "Living Well on the Spectrum" by Valerie Gaus quite helpful.
http://www.amazon.com/Living-Well-Spect ... 606236342/
It can be a bit difficult working through the exercises because they force one to look directly at issues that may be painful or difficult to think about, but it's full of practical advice and offers some useful general problem solving frameworks for issues autistic people may face in a variety of contexts.

Much like any other human being who is basically OK but wishes to improve. I think the only difference is that Aspies have access to a body of knowledge about a cluster of traits we're likely to have. Sometimes one finds people, books, or websites that can be helpful in supplying useful chunks of that knowledge and in clearing a few blocks. Therapists are just people who (one hopes) are good at doing that.