Comments on: Isabel Grinker on Unstrange Minds

By: Autism Vox » Hopes and Outcomes

Autism Vox » Hopes and Outcomes — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 22:04:24 +0000

[...] is anthropologist Roy Richard Grinker writing about his 15-year-old daughter Isabel in his book Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism. what I refer to as being peaceful easy [...]

By: Lisa/Jedi

Lisa/Jedi — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 20:35:07 +0000

Thanks for the link, Kristina! I really appreciate Kyra’s buddhist perspective, since I’ve found a lot of help & comfort there as well.

I also enjoyed the additional quip from Isabel about being “unstrange”- it sounds very much like something Brendan would say…

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 04:25:46 +0000

Kyra at This Mom (http://www.thismom.com) also posts on her son talking about his having Asperger’s Syndrome.

Thanks to Richard Grinker for sharing more about Isabel here—–

By: Leila

Leila — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 21:03:58 +0000

He he he, that was cute about Isabel, Dr. Grinker.

By: Lisa/Jedi

Lisa/Jedi — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 17:44:53 +0000

It’s there, very faintly purple, on the word “interviewed”.

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 17:10:27 +0000

Lisa, do you have the link for that post? I can put it up here.

By: Lisa/Jedi

Lisa/Jedi — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 16:47:30 +0000

Some of the discussion lately has had me thinking about the issue of what we say about our kids online, too… I have decided that it’s too important to share the positive message of life with autism in the light of the reality of our lives & so will continue to do so, keeping in mind the importance of being respectful of Brendan & Charlie at all times as I write about my family & also that this is my story that I’m telling, not Brendan’s. In other words, I’m not speaking for him.

Brendan has also been aware of the word “autism” for a couple of years now. We tend to use it interchangeably with Aspergers & he does, too. Last summer I interviewed him in my blog about Aspergers & how he feels about it. Always good to know…

By: Autism Vox » What’s Your Label? Your Diagnosis?

Autism Vox » What’s Your Label? Your Diagnosis? — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 14:13:35 +0000

[...] And this trend is not only the case for parents and children. Some adults are themselves seeking a diagnosis for a never-before-named condition. Software developer Phil Schwarz found his diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome “‘paradoxically liberating’”; Schwarz was diagnosed while in his late 30s, just after his son Jeremy was found to be autistic. Schwarz is now the vice-president of the Asperger’s Association of New England and notes that his diagnosis “‘allowed me to make sense of everything through a new lens.’” As Roy Richard Grinker, author of Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism notes regarding his daughter’s autism diagnosis in another Washington Post article, “A valid diagnosis of what was wrong with Isabel was more satisfying than devastating.” [...]

By: R.R. Grinker

R.R. Grinker — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 11:50:06 +0000

Richard Grinker here. Isabel began to understand the word autism just a few years ago. I really think it has helped her in some ways. Her sister, an avid springboard and platform diver, has physical therapy for an inflexible shoulder and Isabel compares herself to her sister. She said, “I have speech therapy, and Olivia has physical therapy.” Also, the other day, exasperated that she wouldn’t lift a finger to bring a plate to the sink, I pointed to her sister doing the dishes and said “Look at your sister, she’s helping, why can’t you help?” Isabel responded, “I’m not the same! I’m unstrange.” Good result or bad?

By: Justthisguy

Justthisguy — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 08:15:30 +0000

Something to think about, Doc Chew. I betcha, when he’s old, and yer gone, he’ll be very happy to have such good documentation of his childhood. I wish that I could have such.

Now, it being public, he might get mad at you about that later, maybe not, who knows?