Abstract

Sexual health and sexuality can be difficult subjects for parents and caregivers to broach with autistic children, made more challenging when children are at the severe end of the autism spectrum. Some parents may even question the validity of teaching sexuality to those who are severely autistic.

This practical handbook guides you through the process of teaching about sex and sexuality, answering all of the most crucial questions, including: Why is it necessary to teach this subject to my severely autistic child? When is the right time to start talking about these issues? How detailed and explicit should I be? What methods are most appropriate? It addresses male and female issues separately and covers public and private sexual behaviours, sexual abuse, cross-gender teaching and liaising with school, in addition to the more obvious areas such as physical changes and menstruation.

This will be the ideal guide to teaching about sexual issues for any parent, caregiver or health educator caring for a person on the severe end of the autism spectrum.

Kate E. Reynolds worked for 18 years in various locations in the UK for the National Health Service, and worked in HIV/Aids and sexual health for 7 years with the NHS as a Clinical Nurse Specialist and Senior Counsellor, which involved training other staff. Her son was diagnosed with severe autism disorder in 2005 and she is passionate about supporting parents and caregivers with practical information about autism spectrum disorders. She has returned to the University of Bristol to do her MSc in Disability Studies, with a view to extending her original research in future. Kate lives in Wiltshire, UK, with her two children, Francesca and Jude.
This book is an excellent guide for parents of children with more severe forms of autism struggling with how to talk about sexuality and keep their kids safe. Reynolds delivers an honest account of the issues sometimes faced by those with autism while providing practical strategies for tackling this somewhat taboo subject from the sensitivity and experience of a parent's perspective.
Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson, author of The Science of Making Friends, Assistant Clinical Professor, UCLA, Founder and Director, UCLA PEERS Clinic
This is not simply a book that can educate and inform. Reynolds makes the point that the book is also about 'protection' and that severely autistic children need to possess a broad sexual knowledge, from knowing the correct names for body parts (and understanding their function in sex), to how to recognise and report abuse.
Action for Aspergers
Provides a practical handbook to sex and sexuality, showing parents and educators how to impart the basics to even the most severely autistic child.
Midwest Book Review
Sexuality and Severe Autism... is a relatively short and accessible book written by a health care professional who is also the mother of a son on the spectrum and so can bring genuine insight to the topic. This book includes many important topics (e.g. public and private behaviours and sexual abuse), contains lots of practical advice and tactics and is respectful in focus.
Davida Hartman for Autism Sex Education , http://autismsexeducation.wordpress.com/
I find this book to be informative and inspiring; I really hope parents, carers and professionals alike learn from it, in turn impacting positively on this key area of people's lives.
Jo Hinchliffe, Family Planning Association Project Officer