Therapy for People with AS

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I've been reading several threads about therapy on this forum and it seems that many benefit the most from therapy provided by an AS specialist. I would be very interested in learning more about how AS-oriented therapy differs from other forms of therapy. Would it be very similar to CBT or psychodynamic therapy with slight modifications, or is it completely different? Have you found therapy with an AS specialist helpful for co-morbid problems like anxiety or depression?

I have some experience receiving counselling and therapy prior to my AS diagnosis. Talkng to a professional was somewhat helpful as a tensional outlet, but there were obstacles to my progress-- for example one therapist repeatedly asked the question "How does it make you feel?" Often, I was unsure how to respond to that question because I really was unsure how I felt about a particular situation.

Thanks in advance.

Even among those who specialize in adult asperger's, methods of therapy will vary. But in general, a therapist who understands AS is much better equipped to help us than one who doesn't. There was nothing more frustrating than being asked, over and over, "How did you feel?" or "How are you feeling?" and thinking I'm doing something wrong because i could only come up with, "Well, I didn't really feel ANYTHING. Are we supposed to feel things all the time?"

Or you talk about planning tasks and other organizational stuff and the therapist looks at you like you're an alien when you tell them that you don't perceive time in a strictly linear sense like "normal" people. And if you suggest that time as a linear construct is factually wrong (it is a psychological artifact, not one that has any real anchoring in physical reality) they start considering anti-psychotics as appropriate.

Or you suggest that where you think and where you "talk" are two different cognitive spaces and that to verbally express thoughts requires translation through the "talking" module and it doesn't always go so smooth and that there are actually thing that you think that CAN'T be translated into verbal communication.

In general counseling is an effort to direct the client towards the center of the behavioral and mental health bell curves. But this presumes that the underlying neurology of the client has the perceptions and processing required to support such normalization. By definition, autism does NOT have the capacity for this normalization as it is variant in perception and processing that results in wholly different behaviors. Forcing an autistic neurology into a normalized set of behaviors results in an inefficient use of cognitive resources as a significant portion of those resources are devoted to maintaining the translation between the autistic neurology and the behaviors derived from non-autistic neurology.

But what do I know? I'm on the client side of the therapeutic relationship and don't have a PHD in fixing people.

BACKGROUND INFO:
Our 5yr old was first diagnosed by our LMFT. He is THE ONLY THERAPIST in our locale that was qualified to have an under 10 AS patient. This particular therapist happens to be have a masters in social work, as well. We were blessed to find him, and glad he ha an opening for our son/family.

Once he unofficially diagnosed our son, he referred us to one of the only DPsy's in our area that is qualified to diagnose children. She agreed with his diagnosis. Our son has been regularly seeing her for many months now.

My husband was unofficially diagnosed until a few weeks ago. (At the first meeting of my son and my husband the therapist said "I see what's going on here" to me...then called me on the phone after the initial meeting and began directing me to various waiting lists for therapy for our son. Then encouraged me to keep my husband coming to the sessions so he could receive assistance/diagnosis).

Both my husband and my son have had vast improvements from both therapists. Both say they appreciate the understanding nature of the therapist.

How do they differ from NT therapists? There is much less of the "how does that make you feel" and much more of the "let's break this down into simple steps". Especially for my husband, there is more sorting out of what may have been a misinterpretation of a social situation. Then breaking down of how that could be altered in future settings.

My husband often makes mountains out of molehills. He gets frustrated in feeling that things sound so easy to do but are rather difficult for him to put into action (ex: taking time to listen to our son/not getting angry when our son doesn't like the way he is playing-etc). The therapist has helped open his eyes to the fact that for him many things in the NT world are "Simple but Difficult", and the fact that to change one's behavior or reaction will take time, small steps and dedication to the process of making things become habit.

Our DPsy is now seeing all of us. Me: to help me understand how as an NT wife/parent I need to alter my expectations and style of communication.
Husband: for social therapy work so he can better relate to NT's at work/outings and with me.
Son: Well, let's just put it this way, we realize this Dr will be an integral part of our son's life for at least the next 20 yrs.

We feel blessed that we were able to locate professionals well-versed in AS. Both have given referrals for other health care professionals that are versed in AS. We will now ONLY seek health care from a dentist, family doctor-etc that understand AS. Prior to this we were experiencing all sorts of anxiety and meltdowns due to Doctors that just didn't "GET IT".

There is nothing worse than either my husband or son "being talked at" or misunderstood by someone in the medical world. This, due in large part to therapy, no longer exists for our family.

Greatly appreciate the reples. It seems that therapy from AS specialists is more practical in nature. In recollection of past counseling experiences, the counselor or therapist placed a great emphasis on childhood memories and one of them dogmatically asserted that all mental or emotional problems stem from childhood trauma. I understand that some childhood background on a client is vital for a therapist, but I would prefer my treatment to be as present-focused and solution focused as possible.

I currently live in Seoul, Korea and recently found a clinical psychologist with training in AS, willing to do regular phone consultations with me. I look forward to this opportunity.