Reasonable People Interview Wrap-Up and News

I listened to Ralph Savarese's interview yesterday on the Diane Rehm Show, which, if you missed it, you can listen to here. I thought it was good, of course, which is no surprise, given that I liked the book so much.

One of the more interesting things I thought that came up, though, was the first listener question to make it on the air. It was a question emailed in, in which the listener asked Savarese to talk some more about the computer his son uses to communicate, because she was under the impression such devices had been widely discredited. Savarese quickly moved to point out the differences between augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices and the technique of Facilitated Communication (FC), noting of course that it is only the latter technique that was discredited, and in his estimation mostly due to its misuse, rather than for complete lack of efficacy. He goes into a bit more detail about the history of FC, the more recent research on it, and how his son uses it in his response, which I encourage you to listen to.

The thing that struck me, though, was this apparent public perception that AAC is 1) the same as FC, and 2) also discredited. I hope this isn't actually a widely held opinion. It is already hard enough for nonverbal individuals to be treated equally, a point that DJ makes eloquently in his final chapter of the book. How will they have a chance at being heard if people assume anyone using a computer to speak is a fraud? There is no doubt a huge amount more that could be said about the need for greater acceptance for the use of alternative forms of communication, but I'll just leave it here with the hope that this gives other people, as it did me, a great deal to think about.

In other Reasonable People news, Ralph Savarese will be signing his book at McIntyre's Fine Books in Fearrington Village this Saturday, June 30, at 11am, so if you live in the NC Triangle region, mark your calendars.

Special Needs Planning

Special needs planning is the topic that all my friends and fellow parents of children with autism avoid. After all, we already feel as though we live in this bubble in which we have to plan everything else, from the time we wake up, to John's school schedule, to John's therapist appointments, to making sure he remembers to go to the bathroom - and don't forget the medication. Obviously we do what we do out of love for our children and will continue to perform these acts as long as they are needed. But I too wonder from time to time, who will do these things when I am no longer able?

It is one of those thoughts that comes to me and elicits the same initial reaction as when we are one hour from the beach and I think - Did I lock the front door? However, this "planning for the future" thought doesn't go away, as I know it is one of the most important things I will ever do for my child. Even with these panicked thoughts, I was successful at avoiding the dreaded process until the following two resources were placed on my desk for review.

Special Needs Trusts and The Special Needs Planning Guide are must-have resources. Special Needs Trusts guides you through the process of setting up a trust yourself, or you can use the information in the book to research the topic before selecting a lawyer yourself. The Special Needs Planning Guide not only helps with Estate planning, but with all aspects of your child's life when you are present and when you must rely on the help of others to meet the needs of your child.

Knowing that decisions you make now may negatively effect your child as an adult can be very scary. Did you know that setting up a 529 College Savings Plan may make your special needs child ineligible for government benefits such as Social Security and Medicaid? Did you know that your child is also only allowed to have $2,000 in assets before losing those same benefits?

Do you know what your child's future looks like after high school? What about how he will pay for needs that government benefits won't cover? Knowing the law and how trusts can help you provide for your loved one without taking away benefits is a must. I highly recommend both titles to help start the important process of special needs planning.

Reasonable People Interview on June 25

NPR host Diane Rehm will be interviewing Ralph Savarese, the author of Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism & Adoption, on Monday, June 25. As I wrote before, this book delves into many widespread societal issues, in addition to exploring his son DJ's own life with autism. This should be a very interesting interview, so try to tune in.

Here in the Triangle, the Diane Rehm Show airs every weekday morning from 10am-12 pm, on WUNC. If you aren't in the NC Triangle area, you can find your own NPR affiliate here.

Also, never fear, if you miss the show, we'll post a link to the recorded broadcast here afterward.

A Realistic Visual Trip to the Dentist

We recently got in this great new book, Joey Goes the the Dentist. It's an excellent resource for parents or therapists trying to prepare a child with an autism spectrum disorder for a trip to the dentist. It was put together by two autism professionals who have a lot of experience working with children, so it is definitely written with this audience in mind.

One of the things that makes this book so great is the way it's illustrated. It uses all real color, full-page photographs, giving excellent realistic depictions of what a child can expect to see when they go to the dentist. It also offers explanations of what the various dental tools are, their names, and why the dentist needs to use them, but none of these descriptions get overly technical for the intended child audience.

Joey, the narrator and star of the pictures, also describes the ways he prepares himself for going to the dentist, showing off his calendar with the date marked, and the ways he and his father practice opening wide and brushing their teeth. He also talks about and demonstrates some of the coping mechanisms he uses when he experiences something unpleasant at the dentist's office. I thought his suggestion of asking to keep the weighted lead x-ray vest on for a little while after the x-rays were finished, as a calming tool, was a innovative use of available materials, and a good suggestion for parents to look into. He also talks about the way he makes himself concentrate on something fun he will get to do after the dentist appointment, like going to a fast food restaurant and getting a new toy.

And of course, I can't help mentioning that the kid in the pictures is incredibly adorable, which doesn't hurt the book at all.

Local Authors Win 2007 ASA Literary Award!

The Autism Society of North Carolina Bookstore staff would like to extend a heartfelt congratulations to local authors Maureen Morrell and Ann Palmer. Their book, Parenting Across the Autism Spectrum: Unexpected Lessons We Have Learned, has just been awarded the 2007 Autism Society of America Literary Work of the Year.

Ann and Maureen have strong ties to the North Carolina autism community and to the Autism Society of North Carolina. Their wealth of knowledge and experience as both parents and professionals have benefited the community tremendously, and their book is a must-read for parents of children with ASD. In our expert opinion, their book has reached "classic" status among the available autism titles (and there are hundreds). The writing is superior, and the feedback we consistently receive is how much the book resonates with its readers.

In honor of the ASA literary award (and to introduce the book to more readers), we are extending a 25% discount to customers who order the book through our bookstore website. Customers will also receive a signed copy of the book, so we hope you'll take advantage of this special offer. Our price is lower than the Amazon.com price, and it is good through July 15th.

Ann and Maureen will receive their ASA award on July 13th at the 2007 ASA National Convention in Scottsdale, Arizona.

ASNC Bookstore's Top Ten Bestsellers List for May

May 2007 Top 10 Bestsellers

1. Tasks Galore
   
   
2. TEACCH Transition Assessment Profile (TTAP)
   
   
3. Tasks Galore: Making Groups Meaningful
   
   
4. Tasks Galore for the Real World
   
   
5. TEACCH Structured Teaching Assessment Guide
   
   
6. How To Develop and Implement Visual Supports
   
   
7. Hands are Not for Hitting
   
   
8. All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome
   
   
9. Listen & Collaborate (Version 1- English)
   
   
10. Learning With a Visual Brain
    

Please visit our website to read detailed descriptions of these and other popular titles. We are also adding new books weekly, so check out our New Items category to see our latest offerings.

The Latest Research in One Book

The theme of this year's TEACCH conference, which we were attending as a vendor for most of last week, was Current Research Advances in Autism. Amy Wetherby was one of the featured speakers, and she also happens to be one of the contributors to the recent book Social & Communication Development in Autism Spectrum Disorders. Though we've actually had the book in stock since January, I wanted to highlight it now, because it is so relevant. Not to mention an excellent collection of chapters by leading researchers in the field.

The chapters are divided into four main sections: Assessment and Diagnosis; Screening and Surveillance; Evidence-Based Interventions; and Developmental and Neurobiological Issues. If you look at our full bookstore description, you can see who wrote what for which sections. Besides Amy Wetherby, authors include the co-editors Tony Charman and Wendy Stone, Simon Baron-Cohen, Catherine Lord, Pamela Wolfberg, Patricia Howlin, and many, many others. I have to admit, it took me a long time to read the whole book in order to write the description, because it is so full of information. The chapters offer great overviews of the state of current research in early diagnostic and screening procedures, early intervention, intervention methods in general, and what we actually know about social communication development and its neurological basis. They also cover some of the key issues researchers in the autism field must take into account when structuring new research studies.

Being on the inside track here at the bookstore, I admit I gave a copy of this book to my mother for Christmas, before we even had it up on the website, because I knew she'd find it useful for teaching her class on autism research. She says she's found it very useful, and also reports that when her colleagues discovered it in the vendor room at IMFAR last month, they ended up with so many extra copies amongst members of their department, they had to return some of them. (We weren't there, so I don't know who they bought them from; probably the publisher. Clearly, I think you should buy them from us. All of our sales go directly back to autism services, after all!)

Anyway, if you are at all interested in autism research, I highly recommend this book. There is far too much information in it for me to synthesize it all here, but I assure you, it's all exceedingly well-written.

If what you need is a book that focuses more on research-based direct care practices, though, see the entry below and check out Growing Up with Autism: Working with School-Age Children and Adolescents.