I've Got Self-Esteem

Born on Wednesday, March 27th 1985 , I seemed so normal. I was a perfectly healthy baby just as other babies typically are. It wasn't until much later when I endured so much pain that I would go on a roller coaster ride in which I spent a few years thinking I wasn't normal and I wasn't worthy of love. It wasn't until many years later when I was 22, that I was officially diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. Until then I had no idea why other kids thought I was weird or creepy. It hurt me...
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Born on Wednesday, March 27th 1985 , I seemed so normal. I was a perfectly healthy baby just as other babies typically are. It wasn't until much later when I endured so much pain that I would go on a roller coaster ride in which I spent a few years thinking I wasn't normal and I wasn't worthy of love. It wasn't until many years later when I was 22, that I was officially diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. Until then I had no idea why other kids thought I was weird or creepy. It hurt me greatly. To this day there are still some wounds there from those years of enduring bullying. However, after receiving the diagnosis and staring my journey of understanding not only asperger's syndrome but myself, I have come to where I am today. Today I am Travis Breeding. I am not Asperger's Syndrome or autism. See, I am a human being just as you. That is an important message to send to our children. They need to know and understand from a young age that they are worthy of love and acceptance. We have to teach this as parents from the get go. My goal is to help you the parent not only with building your child's self-esteem but in dealing with all of the things you might have to deal with as the parent. One of the saddest things I often hear from parents is how having a child on the autism spectrum has affected their life.Say you are parents to a child with autism. Your child was just diagnosed. Hopefully the clinician doing the diagnosis has said to you something along the lines of "Congratulations." Your child has asperger's syndrome or autism. I feel that is very important for a clinician to say. We want put the positive spin on it for everyone involved. Not just the child, but parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. When we have the positive mind-set from within the family, then we'll be able to translate those positive feelings about autism to our friends. Our adult friends will be able to see the positive spin that we have on it and then they will feed off of us.In a perfect world, the clinician who diagnosed your child will have sent out the door on your way with a plentiful amount of resources and contacts to make. However, this is not always the case. Your child was just diagnosed with autism. You are now about to embark upon a journey. While this is a new journey, this is not to change your lifestyle or interfere with your friendships you currently have. This is a journey in which you should be able to gain support from your friends and family. I hear too many stories where this isn't the case and it breaks my heart. I often ask myself "Why does society have such a negative view of autism spectrum disorders?" Now, after my experiences in life, I understand there are many reasons for this. Mostly dealing with the area of education and awareness. What I have found is that people really want to learn and become more aware of autism and especially the higher functioning areas that are fairly new such as Asperger's Syndrome. As parents, it starts with you. When your first hear your child is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder you might panic, and that is okay. But know that it is not the end of the world and it is important that you show your child this right away. It is equally as important that you show your friends and family this at the same time. Your friends and family will most likely treat it the way you react to it at first. Try not to overwhelm but let them know. Let them in your life. Allow them the chance to support you and want to learn about autism and how it affects you and your child. This book addresses how I learned to be Travis Breeding and not Asperger's Syndrome.