Children's Health: Asperger's Syndrome
Chris Packham has recently been speaking about the impact of Asperger’s syndrome.* What is it?
Children with Asperger’s syndrome usually experience diffi culty in three main areas: social interaction, social communication and imagination, and cognitive fl exibility. Each of these diagnostic features can be present in different forms and varying degrees. Diffi culties with social interaction can include not understanding the subtleties of social situations, recognising and interpreting other people’s feelings, managing emotions or making and maintaining friendships. Diffi culties with social communication tend to encompass problems with using and understanding verbal and non-verbal language, such as tone of voice and gestures.
The diagnosis involves detailed interviews with the child’s parents/carers with focus on the child’s early development and current behaviour, direct play assessment with the child and collecting information from the child’s nursery or school.
Children are diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome if they do not have a delay in development of their language abilities and if they do not have general developmental (or intellectual) delay, while children are given a diagnosis of autism if they did develop language later, or if they have a learning disability. This is often
Corfe Hills School presents ‘Sweet Charity’
For the past three decades, the students of Corfe Hills School have performed their annual school musical at Lighthouse, Poole. The chance to work in a professional theatre is a rare and treasured opportunity. The collaboration, enjoyment and sense of pride the young people gain from such a shared event is tremendous and for many, shapes their experiences and memories of secondary school.
We hope that you can join us to celebrate the energy, dedication and talent of young people from your community.
‘Sweet Charity’ is the endearing tale of hopeless romantic, Charity, and her desperate attempts to fi nd true, everlasting love in 1960s New York City. Fighting off undesirables is an occupational hazard for Charity as she works as a dance hall hostess in one of the Big Apple’s seedier night clubs. Just when it appears that all is lost, a chance meeting with an awkward but kind tax accountant, Oscar, offers her a ray of hope. Despite the many obstacles she and Oscar encounter, Charity really believes her dreams of a white-picket fence and married bliss are within her reach.
With students from all year groups across the school community participating as crew, band members and performers, this year’s winter production promises to entertain and will certainly showcase the skill and commitment of our students.
32 Explore, leap, climb and party to the max at the area’s largest soft play and party centre.
described as a spectrum with autism at one end and Asperger’s at the other.
Chris Packham described how he was forced to develop a range of coping mechanisms to allow him to work as a television presenter, including learning to look people in the eye, and suppressing urges to make inappropriate or unprofessional comments. But he claimed Asperger’s also allowed him to acquire an encyclopaedic knowledge of the natural world.
Young people with Asperger’s syndrome are at increased risk of developing other diffi culties, in particular anxiety, depression or behavioural problems. These conditions are not part of Asperger’s syndrome and are often treatable, so it is important to seek professional advice if concerns arise.
While it is benefi cial to help children with areas of their diffi culties, it is equally as important to support children in the areas of their strengths. It is often the child’s strengths that increase their quality of life, help them to achieve their potential and contribute to society.
Dr Mark Bridgman Hadleigh Lodge Surgery
www.thehadleighpractice.nhs.uk
*Chris Packham Aspergers And Me was broadcast on BBC Two in October.
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