Abstract

If your child rarely shows you that he or she loves you, it can be profoundly distressing. This is the experience of many parents of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and most fear that it reflects the truth. In fact the truth has generally more to do with the difficulty that young people with an ASD have in communicating like or love for someone physically and verbally. They may not know how to go about expressing themselves in these ways, or understand that family members and friends can find the absence of demonstrative affection upsetting.

This book, by world leading experts Tony Attwood and Michelle Garnett, addresses this issue in practical terms. They provide carefully designed activities for parents to work through with their children to help them to understand and express affection. Their child will learn to identify his or her own and others' comfort and enjoyment range for gestures, actions and words of affection and the different ways to express feelings for someone, appropriate to each relationship and situation. The activities are simple, straightforward, and very carefully structured, so that they can be undertaken at the pace that works for the individual family. The book also guides the adult through the challenges faced by the child, leading to greater understanding and confidence in their relationship with their child, and increased ability to nurture the child's ability to form engaged relationships and friendships with others.

Readers of Tony Attwood's previous books will recognise his warm, positive and empowering approach. The book will be a transformative resource for parents and family worried about their child's emotional life.

Tony Attwood, PhD, is a clinical psychologist from Brisbane, Australia, with over 30 years of experience with individuals with autism spectrum disorders. He is currently adjunct Professor at Griffith University in Queensland. He is the author of  the best-selling Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome, Asperger's Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals, and the Exploring Feelings program manuals. Michelle Garnett, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and founder and Director of Minds & Hearts: A Specialist Clinic for Asperger's Syndrome and Autism. She has specialized in autism spectrum conditions for the past 20 years, and created the first screening instrument for Asperger's Syndrome, the Australian Scale for Asperger's Syndrome (ASAS) in 1993. Michelle has been an invited speaker at many national and international conferences. She lives in Brisbane, Australia.