Hello all. Just wanted to introduce myself.
I first became interested in ASDs when I worked at an ABA agency after college. I became very close with the families I worked with and got to know the intricacies of living on the spectrum. I went to graduate school to become a psychologist, and continued working with people on the spectrum. Although I know ABA can be extremely helpful to some, I have come to look at it as somewhat too controlling, and downright abusive in some circumstances. I am now much more about enabling people with ASDs to truly be themselves and promote understanding to a difficult world.
As luck would have it, I married a woman with a son on the spectrum, and it has made me a great dad. Some difficulties in our first year of marriage led us to Rudy Simone's work, and as luck would have it, I married a lovely Aspie! We have both become passionate about helping people on the spectrum be understood and treated with respect. Now that I am a psychologist, I work with many adults on the spectrum, and am specializing in assessing difficult to diagnose cases in females.
Thank you for letting me be part of this.