Asperger’s Syndrome

People with Aspergers Syndrome have a form of autism. They usually have higher than normal intelligence but have great difficulty with social interactions. This is because of:

Difficulty with communication skills, especially non-verbal language. For example, problems understanding the ‘give and take’ of normal conversation and figurative language. Generally they have rather rigid thought patterns, love routine and hate change.
Difficulty understanding and interacting in social situations. For example difficulty understanding the ‘rules’ of social interaction and great difficulty understanding or working what other people’s behaviour means. This means that people with Aspergers syndrome often don’t understand danger signals from other people.
They have difficulty understanding and empathising with other people’s thoughts, so although their imaginative powers may be exceptional, they cannot make use of them in social settings.

People with Aspergers syndrome look like everyone else but they experience fundamental social difficulties. They long for friends and they long to be accepted and to contribute to society. But society can be very unkind to people with poor social skills. Most of them suffer loneliness and bullying at school and fail to achieve their academic potential. Few Asperger adults find employment, independent living or a social life. The resulting frustration emerges as anxiety, paranoia, aggression or, more often, suicidal depression. Without support they may suffer from mental illness.

However it is not all problems. People with Aspergers Syndrome often have special interests, or obsessions and amass a huge amount of knowledge about a particular subject. The ability to focus exclusively on one subject and the joy that people with Aspergers Syndrome get from their chosen interest are great gifts. Although people with Aspergers syndrome find it difficult to start relationships they are often very loyal friends.

SAFE can help

We run training sessions in schools and colleges
We run monthly meetings in several Essex towns
We arrange social activities for people with Aspergers and their families
We support social skills training schemes and research projects
We produce and disseminate information

Please email us if you would like to know more, to arrange a training session, join us, or make contact with your local SAFE group.

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