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Practical Help for Adults with Asperger’s

practical helpUnfortunately there are very little resources available for adults living with autism spectrum disorders. Adults effected by autism or Asperger’s Syndrome tend to go undiagnosed because they have learned to “blend in” with the world around them. Blending, however, does not negate the fact that these adults experience severe and many times debilitating disabilities relating to their condition. Accommodations, resources, and services that were available to them as children (if they were properly diagnosed) vanish when they reach adulthood.

What Areas Do Adults with Asperger’s Need Assistance In?

Adults on the high-functioning side of the autism spectrum, or with Asperger’s Syndrome tend to struggle with everyday living issues despite their higher than average I.Q.’s and often “normal” appearances. Even those who manage to hold down a full-time job, and/or work in specialized fields tend to need assistance with the mundane everyday activities of life. Assistance may be needed with budgeting, managing finances, and paying bills on time, household chores, cooking, and childcare due to executive functioning issues, one of the core deficits of Asperger’s Syndrome.

Help Finding a Job

Job assistance including training, interviewing strategies, and search methods can be a very useful services to an autistic adult. Resume writing (such as those you can find via https://www.arcresumes.com/local/florida/) is something that is also helpful to an autistic adult, as sitting down with a professional and discussing your skills is beneficial to anyone searching for a job. In particular, knowing where to look for jobs, and counseling on what jobs would be a good “fit” for them would allow the adult to narrow their searches to those types of jobs that will allow for the most likelihood for success. Practicing interviewing skills through mock exercises, practicing looking the potential employer in the eyes, and proper greetings and departures will be helpful. As is common with those who have autism spectrum disorders, it is extremely important to know and understand what to expect. These practice exercises will help the individual to “script” their answers, knowing what they are going to say in advance, to a wide variety of possible interview questions making them feel more comfortable and better prepared.

Help Managing Finances

Even people who understand finances can often have difficulty with handling the day-to-day side of a household’s finances. Setting a budget, a one-time event, may be handled with ease. However, due to the sequencing, planning, and persistence needed to implement that budget on a consistent month after month basis, the same person may be unable to “stick” to the budget. Furthermore, the act of actually getting all the bills paid in a timely manner consistently may require more executive functioning than the individual possesses. Using a service to handle the finances, to actually collect and pay the bills each month, can alleviate some financial burdens, as well, as worries from the autistic adult. To afford those bills, an adult will have to have some sort of income. For some, working in a retail store is ideal as they can follow certain rules and even have a regular shift pattern. For others, the idea of being restricted is not ideal, and may opt for a more freelance job like investments. If wise with money, investments can be made on the stock market and tesco shares could be bought, or at least shares similar. The shares can offer a decent return on investment and allow for a regular income.

One bonus tip to consider: if you are worried about the rising costs of your utility bills, it might be beneficial to do some research into switching energy providers. There are a wide variety of comparison websites out there that can help you to browse Amigo Energy rates as well as plans from other energy providers that can make finding a better deal and deciding your next steps easier. For more information, head to homeenergyclub.com. Of course, there are also other household bills to worry about. One of the most expensive bills that homeowners have to pay is their television bill. This can quickly become expensive by the time homeowners have added extra channels, so it’s important to try and save money there. Some homeowners do regularly negotiate their bills to try and make them more affordable, so it might be worth doing that. There are some cable bill negotiating tips on CableCompare, so those with Asperger’s may want to do that to ensure they’re not overspending on cable TV.

Help with Household Chores

Sequencing, planning, and prioritizing-all executive functions, when lacking are also to blame for difficulties completing or maintaining household/domestic chores. In a world where everything is competing for your attention, without the ability to prioritize and sequence properly simply keeping a house clean, grocery shopping, and cooking for oneself can become an obstacle. In these situations, family members or friends may be able to swap services, or simply help out with domestic chores. When finances allow, hiring someone to come and help around the house, even if it just one or two times per month can make a huge difference.

With the lack of services that are available, autistic adults tend to be left to fend for themselves. While many adults with Asperger’s Syndrome are able to live on their own, and hold down a job and/or perform domestic duties, additional practical help in areas of everyday living can increase the quality and productivity of the individual’s life. Moving the obstacles out of one’s way allows for growth in other areas.

Jeannie Davide-Rivera

Jeannie is an award-winning author, the Answers.com Autism Category Expert, contributes to Autism Parenting Magazine, and the Thinking Person's Guide to Autism. She lives in New York with her husband and four sons, on the autism spectrum.

4 Comments:

  1. I am an adult female Aspie, or at least I used to be before the days of easily being able to relay my assistance needs level were discarded…
    I had not had a problem obtaining employment until recently. My issue has always been keeping a job for more than two and a half years without completely burning out and losing my position. Unfortunately, I am now experiencing the difficulties of securing a new position. Having lost my last position shortly before the pandemic started.
    After losing my job I decided to take a break and reevaluate my work/life balance. I realized I am getting older and I need to maintain my next position until retirement.
    Things did not go as I planned. Shortly after I started taking a class that would give me a better chance at obtaining a remote position the pandemic struck.
    Once overworked and under-appreciated employees experienced remote work during quarantine, many started looking for permanent remote positions. This has made tough competition to get hired in my field. I guess one could say it is an “employer’s market out there.”
    I have seen drastic drops in salaries and the competition for higher paying jobs are fierce.
    Being unemployed has me feeling unmotivated and useless, as I have basically lost my independence. As a result I have let my cleaning and organizing chores remain undone, now these tasks seem completely overwhelming.
    I would agree, employment services and household help to clean and organize would be amazing.

  2. Anyone married to an aspy who doesn’t have sex unless asked to? My husband constantly calls me a frat boy for my high sex drive. It’s hurtful. I have tried all sorts of things. He says he see’s sex and love as separate and cant change that. Refuses to see a psychiatrist or get an up to date diagnosis he has been diagnosed with ADHD, I am guessing he is actually or Comorbid aspy…

  3. I think my husband has Aspergers, he doesn’t like to hold eye contact, he is really good at math, he doesn’t like to attend social gatherings… etc any how he doesn’t clean or cook. He vowed to learn during our wedding ceremony but I am pretty sire he didn’t mean it. We have been married over a year. He only does dishes if I ask him he doesn’t do any other cleaning EVER he has been underemployed for four years now from a six figure income to making less than me (36,000) we are living off his savings from his high income job. I have suggested hiring someone once a month to help me out. He is extremely organized with his stuff but wont help me with my stuff. I am kinda messy but asked with help keeping the place tidy (since he is so good at it) so its easier for me to clean. I end up doing all chores except taking out garbage! Walking the dog. Unless I ask… what the heck do I do?! Do I just hire someone to help?

  4. Pingback: Practical Help for Adults with Asperger’s. | Appalachian aspie part two.

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