Tony Attwood conference - worth attending?

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tony attwood is holding a two days conference here in the uk later this year. my counsellor at university suggested me to go as attwood will be talking about women aspies among other topics. has anyone been to one of his talks/conferences? is he a very dedicated and genuine clinician or more into his own publicity/status? any good? worth attending?
I've read his Complete Guide to AS book and it's quite good.
here's link to the agenda of the conference: http://www.autismoxford.org.uk/3rdjune_attwood.html

saw him in boston, yes very much worth going i thought. very positive message.

I went and he bored me to tears. I didn't like all the externalizations he was making about aspies. So I left during break time.

You know, I saw him for the first time in Foster City, CA about eight years ago. I was by myself, and the parent of a child on the spectrum, and relatively new to the diagnosis, and I thought Tony Attwood's conference was great -- I felt like I learned a lot, and that he was really very entertaining at the same time as teaching me much about the world of Asperger's.

Fast forward to a few years ago -- and I took my husband with me to a Tony Attwood Conference. It just wasn't the same. I don't feel like I got anything much out of it, and neither did my husband. I definitely don't think Tony was as entertaining [maybe he was just tired or having an off day], and also, as parents we've read and learned a lot since my first conference, and I guess we both felt like it didn't help us out very much.

I think Tony is great for your first, or early, experience with these type of conferences. I would still recommend seeing him.

Waste of money.

Talk to yourself in the mirror about your ASD, and you'll have everything you need to know.

I know tony and I support the work he does and the quality of his talks. Bear in mind the talks are for the general public and do not go into the level of detail many of us on the spectrum desire and require. We can always further research ideas or issues raised on our own, which is what I tend to do with anything I am interested in. In a sense with us ASD people, he's already talking to us as the experts, and I see him trying to encourage individuals on the spectrum all the time - to find ways of living meaningful and productive lives.

I don't consider his talks a waste of money. I will be speaking at a conference with him in Sydney in October - and he has personally helped and supported quite a few AS people I know - me included - in this region around Brisbane and to the south a little.
I will be presenting a lecture and powerpoint to his staff up at Minds and Hearts Clinic in Brisbane next month. They are one of the few facilities that actually encourage healthy and positive contribution from ASD people.....and respect our added insights and expertise in the realm of ASD's. They are willing to learn MORE...from us. I think that indicates a BIG start in the right direction.......

I actually wish there were more clinicians who would adopt this approach.

I'd boycott the man just because of his willingness to associate himself with that Cassandra smear campaign. But, if you've read his book, you probably know that nothing you can learn from him is any more advanced than what you'll encounter just chatting at WP. He did a lot to tell the world that AS exists; but now that the world knows, he's not really helping to advance either knowledge or acceptance.

I would go. I'd love to hear him speak. He probably has info on women and girls that he hasn't even published yet, and I'd love a firsthand look.

^ WHitetiger, you should mail him your latest book, or email it to Michelle Garnettt who runs Minds and Hearts. You have a great deal of insight into the BPD/ASD in women overlap in adulthood, and it would be very good to expose them to this. They already know about it of course, but I believe your views would be welcomed and respected.
I linked Michelle Garnett up with Rudy Simone regarding her book 'Aspergirls' and Michelle was really interested and open and recently quoted from Rudy in the Minds and Hearts newsletter.

I don't know, it'd be like going to a conference about "being human" where the lecturer is actually Chewbacca, and expecting grand information, insight and other helpful things in regards to "being human" when his only reference is Han Solo and a few other humans out of millions (well, countless trillions in that universe, but we can look over that fact).

He's coming here too and I think I'm gonna go if I can scrape together the money. I don't know how involved he was with the whole Cassandra-syndrome business and I won't write him off because of it. He's going to talk about CBT for aspies and also how to manage problematic behaviors in youngsters, and in addition talk about careers for aspies, all very relevant for me. I'm not expecting him to tell me anything about myself that I don't already know, but I'm always interested in new perspectives and he's definitely met and helped more autistic people than I have, so I think I can learn plenty.

I also like hearing what other autistic women are like. I enjoy the aha-moments when I see myself in them and another piece of the puzzle falls into place. It helps me understand who I am (it's only been 8 months since my diagnosis)

here's link to a radio interview with attwood where he discussed girls/women with asperger's.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/aspergerwo ... es-of-fema

He wasn't that involved in the whole "Cassandra" thing proposed by Maxine Aston. He used the term here and there. WHat he was trying to explain was that some NT women who have AS male partners can become depressed because their NT needs are not met in a way they presumed would be. He makes mention of this in SOME cases and not all. I also know in my relationship - me being AS and ex-partner AS/NT border, also fitted this pattern, with my partner getting frustrated because I was not into some of the NT ways of relating he craved.

Attwood did use the term at one stage, but now refrains from doing so from what I can gather.

And i think it is pretty silly to judge someone on the basis of media and second-rate information that is now outdated and being disseminated in the U.S and in some other quarters...without actually knowing the person or discussing it with that person one on one. Tony spends time answering many emails diligently. Ask him personally rather than adhering to the clap-trap about his steeped involvement in the Cassandra Syndrome that is propounded by people who don't even know the full situation. Ughghghg.


Tony's sister in law Penny is actually AS and so he lives with ASD in his family and understands it from a personal and clinical standpoint.

and good you put that interview link up. I might add, in the interview there may be reference to me being involved in the AWA. i have resigned all positions from that organisation and also the AWN actually, because of a difference in approach, and a preference for working on a local and regional and national level with AS women and girls.