Talking Teenagers: Information and Inspiration for Parents of Teenagers with Autism or Asperger's Syndrome »

Written from first-hand experience, Talking Teenagers is an encouraging and inspiring book for parents of teens on the autism spectrum. Everyday questions, from how to deal with anger and what to take on vacation, as well as more complex issues, such as how to approach sex education and plan for the future, are discussed with insight and compassion.

Ann Boushey provides accessible question and answer sections, interviews with school counselors and other parents, and thoughtful vignettes, or "Chicken Nuggets for the Soul", that conclude every chapter. Both empowering and practical, this book is ideal for parents and useful for professionals working with young people on the autism spectrum.

Introduction     11
A parent's heartache-ever present     13
HFA or AS? What's the diff?     17
What do I tell people about autism?     19
What do we do with the good intentions of others?     25
IEPs and those elusive goals     29
Autism and gray     33
Charting growth     36
Living with fear     40
Understanding Jon's way of understanding: Or, Lost in Translation is not just a movie title     43
"Sometimes it's all Greek to me too!"-explaining terminology     49
What to take on vacation     53
On perseveration-"Stop beating that dead horse!"     58
What about anger? Just because your child has a disability, doesn't make you a doormat!     62
"I love you, but we are not connected at the hip!"     65
Straight talk for parents: "We need to be like the Energizer Bunny, we must keep going and going..."     70
Birthday parties-so simple, yet so impossible     75
An interview with the school counselor     79
"Is there a lesson in these socks?"-dealing with tactile issues     88
A bully by any other name is still a bully     91
When parents hit a brick wall in communication     99
An interview with an experton autism-Dr. B.J. Freeman     103
Literally speaking     107
Choosing your battles: Fighting the system     110
"Get off my back! Please!"-understanding rudeness     117
An interview with a parent expert-Emily Perl Kingsley     122
Stopping to note the successes-a trip to the dentist     127
Planning for our own demise: An interview with an attorney     130
Changing my view     140
Resources remix: Useful Information and resources     143
"We must see differently"     149
Explaining their differences to our teens     152
Thoughts on normal     158
A case for empathy     161
"But do I have to fix him?"     165
The s-e-x word meets the a-u-t-i-s-m word     169
Waiting for the other shoe to drop-optimistically being pessimistic     173
Charting behaviors     178
Three steps forward, one step back-not the latest dance craze     183
Family members and autism: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly     186
Finding hope at the library     191
Autism and religion     193
Angels by my side     197
Shadow dancing     200
Serendipity-the sauce for those nuggets!      204
Epilogue     207
References     209
Subject Index     210
Author Index     216