Your Child and Autism

A New Approach to Asperger Syndrome: Wilderness Therapy

(PRWeb) February 12, 2007 -- He has trouble making friends with kids his age.

She seems so uncoordinated.

He has a strange obsession with bugs.

She misses social cues and doesn't recognize it when her peers react negatively to her behavior.

Can these teens go camping?

Jeffrey Derry, MA LPC NCC, clinical director of the SUWS programs, believes so.

SUWS is an outdoor, short-term therapeutic program headquartered in Shoshone, Idaho, that has been serving struggling youth for over twenty-five years.

Derry believes that teens with Asperger Syndrome could benefit as well.

Asperger's disorder/syndrome is a fairly new and often misdiagnosed condition in adolescents and adults. Some of the common symptoms of this Disorder are marked impairments in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body postures, and gestures to regulate social interaction. In addition there is generally an inability to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental age and restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities.

Teens with the disorder often have high IQs and become experts on one particular subject. However, what often causes them the most pain in life is their inability to connect with others. "Children/adults diagnosed with Asperger's disorder" often have to learn intellectually how to make eye contact, read body language and other social skills that come naturally to others.

Being different is particularly painful for teenagers, who notoriously care what their friends think about them. For Children diagnosed with Asperger's this is especially difficult due to how they view the world. Most Children diagnosed with Asperger's face exclusion and rejection, especially in mainstream schools. Most experts on the disorder believe that it is impossible for Children/adults diagnosed with Asperger's disorder to learn social skills and sensitivity to others in an ordinary high school classroom. If Children/adults diagnosed with Asperger's disorder receive one-on-one training and intervention, they can go on to lead productive adult lives.

Derry believes that time in the wilderness could "jump start" a new understanding of others and social relationships for these teens. SUWS teens camp and hike in small peer groups that always have no less than a 4 to 1 ratio student to trained wilderness staff. In addition each student is assigned to a field supervisor/therapist who sees him/her 3-8 hours each week. The 24 hour/ 7 day a week interactions with the staff, therapist and other students help create a nurturing and open environment. This way learning social skills becomes a natural part of enjoying the outdoors together.

Derry individually selects each group of campers in terms of the individual's needs, behaviors, and functioning level. With this level of selection the ability to create a small nurturing and supportive peer culture allows for the first time, an Asperger's disorder diagnosed student to be with a small group of friends who accept and like him or her as a real "camping buddy."

"The use of appropriate and often hand-selected peer interaction will help with delayed social development and self-esteem," he says.

He also explains that the counselors and therapist will use the latest techniques, such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy. This therapy helps people learn to better tolerate stress and interpersonal conflicts. The therapist also works extensively with the teens' parents and family helping to educate them on the process and to understand the condition. There is a long orientation process before any teen goes into the wilderness. Derry explains that he requires extensive testing of each teen before any wilderness experience to make sure "the diagnosis is solid and to develop a program individually structured to the age, sex and needs of the child."

SUWS enrolls teens ages 11 to 17 for a wilderness experience of four to nine weeks, depending on the individual's needs. Then the staff helps them successfully transition to a home setting or a therapeutic boarding school, if necessary.

To learn more about how SUWS works with teens with Asperger Syndrome visit www.suws.com/asperger or call 888.879.7897.

###

MORE ARTICLES:

Experiencing Disability Before Retirement is Among Factors in Qualifying for SSDI
People who have experienced a disability before retirement age may not realize they can apply for Social Security Disability Insurance; Allsup outlines factors in eligibility

Autism And Diet - What Are The Effects?
Autism can be a particularly difficult condition to deal with as a parent. It involves making sacrifices, changing your lifestyle, and exploring a variety of methods that can help reduce the intense social anxiety that is linked to this condition.

The RDI® Program Brings State-of-the-art Autism Technology to Sacramento
Sacramento, CA- The Relationship Development Intervention® Program leads the race to improve quality of life for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders through family, lifestyle and technology.

Win Social Security Disability For Bipolar: How To Build A Bullet Proof Case
Millions of Americans suffer from bipolar disorder and other mental health conditions that interfere with their ability to work However, it can be very hard win approval for bipolar disability benefits from the Social Security Administration, compared to a person who has an obvious physical disability

Disability Insurance Policy: 5 Things To Get The Best Deal
When gods are displeased they don't consider your delicate situation. They simply unleash there wrath and you are left in the middle to suffer the divine onslaught. You keep thinking what was it that you did wrong to invite it, but what works better is to stand up to the challenge and face it like the brave person He made you. Now, the only choice you have is to deal with it when it comes headlong or prepare yourself beforehand for any such eventuality.

5 Simple And Effective Autism Strategies For Parents
No parent wants their child to be autistic, but for those parents who are faced with a child who has autism, relief can be found by applying the some autism strategies. Strategies for autism provide parents with different ways to help cope and manage the disorder. After all, autism isn?t a condition your child will get over, grow out of, or die from; it is simply their way of life. Therefore, it is essential parents know how to make the life of their autistic child a safe, comfortable, secure, and happy one.

Are Aspergers and High Functioning Autism the Same Thing?
One of the most common mistakes made about autism is that Asperger?s Syndrome and high functioning autism are the same thing Many parents struggle with this problem because there is so much information out there that uses the two terms interchangeably

What an Increase in Stimming May Indicate About Your Current Treatment For Autism
As parents work to find effective treatments for autism, many of the usual symptoms their children display will continue In the majority of cases, this often includes some form of ?stimming?

Disability Life Insurance - Some Tips On How To Buy
Although disability life insurance covers ourselves and our loved ones during good and bad times, it can be a very dry subject. We have therefore compiled a quick list to make understanding disability life insurance easier.

Book Shares True Story of How Routine Vaccine Caused Autism for Author's Son
"The Boy in the Window: A Journey Through an Unexpected Tragedy" tells the incredible story of author Barbara Coppo's son Kenny, whose childhood DPT vaccine yielded a devastating diagnosis.