Let's Talk Asperger's Syndrome ;D

[Krysta]

Hello, I have been thinking about doing a blog about Asperger's Syndrome for a while now and I thought that since tonight I cannot sleep I may as well go ahead and start with at least one post. Anyway, My name is Misha, or Misa as it is correctly spelt, and I have Asperger's Syndome. The reason I have decided to start this is because there all a lot of books on Asperger's Syndrome, or as it is also known as, High Functioning Autism, and it seems to me that even after reading the book cover to cover, people still do not understand how to act or respect, a person with this gift. And not only do I have Asperger's Syndome, but so do three, maybe four, of my five brothers. I will start with my brothers before I explain about myself.

The eldest of my little brothers is fifteen. Not only does he have Asperger's Syndome but he also has ADHD, and not only that, he gained a head injury when he was born. The reason I will start this post with Sasha, or as I like to call him, The Joker, is because I have been very agitated with how the kids are treating him in his school and how the teacher seems to just not understanding him.

First I will start on how he acts. For one, he is very stiff, and it is very hard for him to relax. In fact he wanted so badly when he was younger, and even now to play the Drums. But he just cannot get the hang of it because he cannot relax. That is something right there about High Functioning Autism, he is VERY awkward. Like for instants, anyone here like, or love, Death Note? Do you like, love, or hate L? Well, that is the best way really that I can describe my brother. Literally, he is skinny, tall, and not only that, his back is always bent and he HAS to sit with his feet on the chair. Heck, you even had to remind him to constantly put on his shoes when he was younger when he goes outside and it's cold out!

But, he had gotten better since he had been put on medication when he was about six, maybe seven, for Hyperactivity. Back then Asperger's Syndrome wasn't widely known till recently. Once he was diagnosed he was given medication and he's a little bit better, but not enough to not stand out in the crowd like a sore thumb. He has a hard time socializing and many kids tease him and he just laughs with them, not fully understanding that they insulted him. Like for instant, you say something sarcastically he just does not understand sarcasm. He also doesn't know how to whisper and is often very loud, and when he walks, he stomps. Also something he doesn't understand is jokes. You will often have to explain the joke to him before it becomes funny. But, he will make his own jokes that you do not understand and to him it will be the funnest thing in the world.

But do not think that this is a curse, for it is NOT! Look at Einstein, he had Asperger's Syndrome like no one knew and guess what, even though he came up with a deadly mathematical equation, he actually graduated(I heard somewhere)from a school that had no math. In fact he was bad at math! Or at least that is what I heard.

But for my brother, you know why it is a gift? Because he Obsesses. In fact, he has made up his own Comic Book called Super Space Kid, and honestly, I am hooked on the book. There are, I believe twelve seasons he has made for it already, along with three movies he is in the process of sketching, along with six other books about characters that have small parts in his original comic. And you know what's amazing? Because of his Asperger's Syndome, he has been making pictures since he was about five years old. The first picture he drew perfectly was when Spy Kids first came out on DVD. And it was a Foogly from Spy Kids... I believe's it's called a Foogly anyway. Well, when I looked at it, it looked EXACTLY like what was in the paused movie. And if I can find and scan the picture he made of Sora, Donald, and Goofy from Kingdom Hearts 2 and scan it on here you would think he was an artist from Disney. And what is even more amazing about this is that he does this ALL in PEN. Yes, NO pencils, NO crayons, NO colored pencils, NOTHING. JUST pen.

Also another thing about Asperger's Syndrome is that we have a hard time showing emotion. Sasha especially. When he's happy he smiles but he doesn't know how to show true, genuine happiness.

He also doesn't like loud noises and is easily distracted. That was the main reason he was failing this term of school in the beginning of the year until we managed to find some earplugs for him. And he doesn't like it when he is called names. In fact, something that is so crazy and I have no clue why he actually cries about it is that when the littlest of the family begins calling him Sushi he takes it so seriously. But that is just something that comes in the little package called Asperger's Syndrome. We take things seriously, unless we learn over the years to not take it seriously.

Well, that's it for post on Sasha, now I will start with my second little brother Ivan. Which I will make a new post for. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I will try to answer with the best of my knowledge. And please keeps the comments nice, any that are rude, mean, violent or otherwise I will have removed. Thank you.

[Krysta]

Hello again, as I said last night I will post this with my brother Ivan. And here we gooooooo.


Ivan, basically the simplest way to introduce him is that even with his medication he is like a total Zombie. A zombie that had difficulty understanding what he needs to do in school and often times you have to rephrase a question that you shoot at him. He very slow in everything he does, except when playing games, but other then that at the beginning of to school year you had to literally push him all the way to the school doors because he just stood there. In school he is equally slow and most of the time forgets what he is doing because he is in a constant la, la, land.

But don't take it that he is just trying to keep from doing school, in fact, he loves school. But the things is is that, with his Asperger's Syndrome, he is easily distracted and often comes home with his bookbag just completely filled with not only homework, but unfinished and unstarted school work.

This happened last year as well, in fact, one of the teachers, whom I very much dislike, was awfully misunderstanding of him. What happened a year back was that, Ivan, he often spaces out, much like he does now, though it was so bad he was coming home with a month load of unfinished work. It was so bad, he would stay up passed midnight doing his homework, panicking and crying because he didn't want to get in trouble at school. Well, in all his panic and all the stuff he needed finished as well as all the stuff he needed to remember for tests, he forgot about a test that his teacher, whom I will not name, gave him and he failed it. She was so upset with him that she had my parents come in for a meeting and the first thing she did was jump down my moms throat. Not even introducing herself or even saying the traditional 'Hi, how are you.' All she did was bring Ivan up to my mother with her, put her hands on her hips, and say, "Ivan, what did you do today?" of which he hung his head low in shame and said that he didn't come prepared for school. That made me so mad when I heard it because for one, it is very hard for a person with Asperger's Syndrome to be prepared, especially with a lot of presser put upon them. And the presser is so much because like stated before, people with Asperger's Syndrome take things very seriously, so when Ivan was taking his tests or racing to do his homework at home and ended up staying up till midnight to do it, all the presser on him made him completely forget the test and made him physically cry.

Another thing about Ivan, and like I had explained he was crying a panicking about his unfinished homework that lasted a week that he had to get done the next day, he doesn't like to get in trouble. And the teacher, he has her this year too, but after talking with her and getting to know her better things have become a lot better and the presser isn't so much like it use to be.

Now, there is something I have not mentioned about him yet. The thing he obsesses over, just like Sasha obsesses about his art work and comics, Ivan obsesses about one certain game character we all know and love, some may even hate him. And that character is... Kirby. My brother is just absolutely obsessed with the pink puffball. He collects the plushies, the games, the action figures. In fact, it's gotten to where all that he has is collectible items, he no longer has toys to play with except for his Kirby games. He is so obsessed, that when you tell him to get off the Wii, he just will not get off of it unless you threaten to ground him. Or you actually have to ground him and take away the wii in order for him to stop playing the game.

On another note with his obsession on Kirby is that, on those games, he believes that only HE can play Kirby, and becomes so upset when someone else tries to play him. He also becomes upset when someone says that his favorite color is something other then pink!

He also doesn't like to be called names, and it's funny but at the same time very upsetting for everyone in the house that he takes being called Wario, a character and game he doesn't like, so seriously. What he will do when the baby of the family calls him Wario, or when he gets in trouble for being mean to one of the other boys and he feels that he was the victim, he will jump up and down, making tons of noises before saying, "You'r Wario." or "Your stupid." or something along the lines of that. In fact, it bugs me like crazy when he talks like that, because it is so ridicules to me. Though, I do try to ignore it because that is just part of his Asperger's Syndrome.

That is as much as I can think of for now about Ivan, next I will start with my brother Petr in another post.

[Krysta]

Hello, hello. I have decided that since I am on a roll here, I may as well go ahead and start talking about Petr before I break my thinking thread.

Petr is very.... unusual, or unique I guess I could say. You see, he is the worst out of all of the kids I know of who has Asperger's Syndrome. You see, when he was born, he was born crying. And for everyday up till now, he has been crying his eyes out. That is part of his Asperger's Syndrome, and it is seriously something even I don't understand fully. If he doesn't get something he wants, he cries. If you get after him, he cries. If you do anything really he will cry.

Also something he doesn't understand is consequences. But first I think you should understand what I mean from the beginning. He is, what the family like to call, the Inventor. Because he is always inventing new toys and games that he wishes to sell when he grows up. And believe it or not he has some very good idea's, heck, he even built his own game by himself on the computer, not help from dad, no nothing. He figured out the codes all on his own!

Now, here is the thing that brings about consequences. Stealing. Since he loves making his own toys and such, he will steal something of someones else's in the house to make his own things. There have been many times I have had to take my hats away from him because he wanted to make a plush bird or frog out of it. And there are many things that he has stolen from his little brother that he wanted to make his own things out of. Like another thing he took from me was a pair of angel wings I was going to use this year for Halloween. Well, they disappeared, found them in his closet, the wings completely destroyed. He has also taken things of my mothers, like her perfume, just because he liked the bottle and made a snow globe out of it. And he just loves my dads tools, my dad physically has to lock his tool box to keep my brother sticky fingers out of it. But, we are in the process of teaching him to not steal and so far he is doing very good.

But, he still doesn't understand the consequences when he not only steals, but when he punches the other boys in the back, face, or stomach. My parents will ground him for a week or so and still, when he becomes angered he still will hit others.

He even cusses. Though even though I think he is lying when he says he never said the word 'fuck' for instants, he still cusses like crazy even after he promises not to say them anymore. My father has even grounded him for a month for saying the word and even now he still says it. But now that I think about, he may not even know mentally that he is doing it. He just does.

He even lies. And here's something else about his Asperger's Syndrome, if he lies about something, he mentally and physically believes it, and even though you know better because you have seen him do it yourself, or see that smile on his face when he is lying, he will physically cry when you do not believe him.

But, that was months ago and honestly he is beginning to get a bit better. Let's just cross our fingers and hope this changes before he ends up in jail.

And that is it for today, I will come on tomorrow for another post.