Foreword, Donna Williams. Introduction. 1. Investigation. 2. Theories and ideas. 3. Analysis and discussion. 4. Hypotheses. 5. Diagnosis. 6. Treatment. 7. Implications. 8. Conclusion. Appendices. Bibliography. Index.
Stella Waterhouse has taught young children with learning disabilities and spent ten years working with emotionally disturbed adolescent boys. After five years as first Senior Care Officer, then Deputy Principal, of a community providing residential care and training to adults and teenagers with autism, she began to research the various problems they experienced in order to write this book: a project which has since led her to develop a service providing help and advice for people with autism and related disorders.
This is indeed a very positive book by Stella Waterhouse, who has
spent many years teaching children with learning disabilities and
emotional problems.The argument of the book is that children with
autism are not mentally handicapped, but rather normal children
whose problems leave them isolated and unable to express or
understand even their own feelings due to a special response to
anxiety. An interesting review for parents or professionals working
with autism.
*International Journal of Adolescent Medicine & Health*
Her approach is professional and authoritative without being
authoritarian. Drawing on numerous first-person accounts of autism,
such as those by Donna Williams, Jasmine O'Neill, and Temple
Grandin, she argues that much autistic behaviour is an attempt to
cope with an overwhelming range of stimuli which creates an
unbearable anxiety. In Waterhouse's perspective, then, such
practices as holding therapy, where an autistic individual is held
tightly despite her/his struggles, or Lovaas therapy, with its
intense focus on modifying the behaviours of the person with
autism, are intrusive approaches that often generate more anxiety
and, thus, further entrench a defensive response to the world.
Facilitated communication, on the other hand, can help relieve
anxiety and, thus, is a positive strategy for dealing with
autism...Waterhouse is an engaging, likeable writer with important
things to say to anyone who is involved with autism.
*Disabilities Study Quarterly*
I read this book and saw an extremely well-researched and
up-to-date view of both the symptoms (and presentation of symptoms)
of autism, and the wide variety of theories relating to the
possible causes and interventions currently being used with people
with autism. The approach taken is slightly different from what has
been written on the subject before because, as well as combining
empirical research on autism, its symptoms, possible causes and
interventions, the author throughout stresses the importance of the
individual experiences of people with autism.
*Communication*
The author uses the knowledge she has acquired of her patients'
multiple problems as the starting point of an exploratory journey
in which she presents us with the most salient theories and ideas
that exist with regard to the causality of autism. This she follows
with a critical analysis and discussion where she acknowledges the
contradictions and shortcomings many of these theories suffer from.
She has sensibly steered clear of making any claims that any of her
discussions or reviews is exhaustive or definitive and instead she
refers the reader to her original sources of information. This is
an ambitious, informative and refreshing book that could not have
come at a better time and it is aimed at clinicians, patients and
parents alike. We are encountering an exciting era where autistic
spectrum disorders are more readily identified and a variety of
treatments are proposed.
*Young Minds Magazine*
An interesting aspect of the book is the comparison made between
autism and other conditions with some similar features; such as
obsessive compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder and
perceptual problems. One of the features that makes this book
powerful reading, is the numerous real life accounts. The book is
well referenced and offers a range of material in the bibliography
to allow the reader to gain further information. This book is a
must for all public libraries. People with the condition, their
carers and their friends and relatives should have ready access to
a comprehensive account of autism, which this book certainly
provides.
*Community Practitioner*
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