'I realised I had been camouflaging my whole life - I'd been trying to mask my autistic traits and fit in with all the non-autistic people around me.' Growing up autistic can often feel as though you have to become a chameleon in social situations, camouflaging yourself to fit in with a seemingly neurotypical world. Combining lived experience with scientific research and practical advice, this book is the essential guide to understanding why you mask and how to feel confident without one. Focusing on diagnostic devices like the Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) to discover the situations in which you mask the most and why, alongside a range of techniques, from CBT, compassion based therapy, DBT, and mindfulness to relieve anxiety and reduce stress, this guide gives you all the tools and confidence you need to re-connect with yourself, the things you love and finally, take off your mask.

One of the most remarkable memoirs ever written. The diary of Jean-Dominique Bauby who, with his left eyelid (the only surviving muscle after a massive stroke) dictated a remarkable book about his experiences locked inside his body. A masterpiece and a bestseller in France. In December 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby, editor-in-chief of French Elle and the father of two young children, suffered a massive stroke and found himself paralysed and speechless. But his mind remained as active and alert as it had ever been. Using his only functioning muscle - his left eyelid - he was determined to tell his remarkable story, painstakingly spelling it out letter by letter. The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly records Bauby's lonely existence but also the ability to invent a life for oneself in the most appalling of circumstances. It one of the most extraordinary books about the triumph of the human spirit ever written.

The impact of finding out your child is disabled can be wide ranging. The author's experience as a psychologist and parent of a disabled child informs this book which focuses on what helps, and hinders, parent-carers' emotional wellbeing. Research shows that mental health, relationships, family life, access to work and leisure activities, as well as finances can all be affected. For many parents the focus of those around them is solely on the child and their own needs become neglected. The author re-focuses attention onto the wellbeing of the parent. This includes acknowledging emotions, connecting with positive others, empowering yourself, regularly engaging in self-care and finding your own sense of meaning and purpose in life. Identifying the myriad of different emotions parents may experience as an understandable reaction to an unexpected situation the book includes quotes from parent carers. Connecting to psychological theories, such as positive re-framing and post-traumatic growth, the book applies these in practical ways to the parent-carer experience. Acknowledging that the journey is neither linear nor simple and transitions such as secondary school, puberty and adulthood require further periods of adjustment. Parents rarely get the time or support to stop and reflect on how they are feeling as they are caught up in the day to day busyness of caring. The difficulty is exacerbated by limited resources and battling for services. Building on the author's Doctoral research and having supported parent carers in different roles over the last 13 years this book provides a compass to ensure parents know they are not alone.

Much of the recent research in autism comes from a quantitative, researcher's viewpoint. However, this book's mission is to look at the "whole picture" in order to capture the meaning of Autism and its effects on the family. The book is written primarily for social work professionals in the field of autism and developmental disabilities, Students, individuals affected with Autism Spectrum Disorders and their families alike, and anyone who has a special interest in the ASD field. In order to capture the impact of autism, the autor utilizes her own personal and professional experience in identifying the different aspects that make up the culture of autism: its history, the biological and environmental aspects; past and present governmental and educational policies; the social impact of autism and its impact on the family unit.

Inside this book are reflections on the nature of vision and blindness. Further, there are explorations of interpretive research, and presentations of some seminal and contemporary publications in the field of blindness. The other major fodder for conversation with you the reader is an elaborated example of empirical research entitled Blind Online Learners. Each element of this inquiry is explicitly reflected upon as an example of interpretive research. This book is intended for four intersecting groups of readers. If you are a philosopher, closet or sanctioned, then you cannot ponder the nature of being without due consideration for vision, and cannot contemplate the role of seeing in our lives without listening to the stories of those who are blind. The tales within this text are particularly contemporaneous because they are contextualized by the cyber-phenomena of online learning. This segues to the second group of readers, as the described empirical research was originally intended to bring greater depth and breadth of understanding to the field of educational technology, particularly as it intersects with disability studies. There is a paucity of published literature that has inquired into disabled online learners, and this research study responds to that call. Third, this book may be used as a textbook on approaches to interpretive empirical research. It is as close as one may come to a recipe, walking students through a specific example. Because it is situated in actual empirical research, the intention was that it avoid the trap of being prescriptive or formulaic. Finally, the text is intended for readers interested in the field of blindness. The text reviews some of the seminal and contemporary research on blindness, and then presents an elaborated example of what we can and should expect to emerge in the knowledge production industry, changing what it means to be blind.

The new edition of Dyslexia is written for parents of dyslexic children and the professionals who work with them, and provides information on the role parents can play in supporting their dyslexic child. This updated edition contains new material and up-to-date discussions of current research and programs. * Empowers parents by providing them with strategies for dealing with a wide range of concerns including dyspraxia and dyscalculia * New sections cover post-school issues, the emotional needs of young people with dyslexia and information on how parents can help at home * Features information on some of the more popular interventions for dyslexia, and critical evaluations of alternative treatments * Includes first hand accounts of parents hopes, successes and setbacks, and extensive lists of organizations and resources

Learn how smart people with learning gaps struggle, survive, and achieve Smart But Stuck, Second Edition is an updated look at how smart people with learning gaps can not only overcome them, but become successful in learning-and life. The new edition of this classic explores the emotional aspects of learning disabilities and imprisoned intelligence, showing how-and why-smart people with learning disabilities are resilient in getting help in order to struggle, survive, and achieve. The book also includes new material on the relationship between learning disabilities and neuroscience and a new foreword by Joseph Palombo, Founding Dean of the Institute for Clinical Social Work in Chicago. This unique and compelling new version takes into account that the reader may have a learning disability, so it's easy to read and understand. Topics build on each other so the reader's knowledge becomes cumulative without dramatic effect and so emotional, biological, and social issues are easily integrated as the reader learns to turn a learning disability into an advantage. From the author: "Resilience is the capacity to bounce back; in individuals with LD it's a powerful tool. When people hit the chasm, shame is the outcome. People can withdraw and give up. (Some people take solace in substance abuse to ease the emotional pain.) Others keep trying. In the process of not giving up, people learn to keep hope alive because eventually new opportunities for learning become possible." Smart But Stuck, Second Edition examines: * imprisoned intelligence and resilience-how does it happen? * shame and resilience * discovery and diagnosis * learning to live with the diagnosis * new reflections * resilience and fulfilling potential * neurocognitive foundations of learning disorders * self-psychology and imprisoned intelligence * psychotherapy * fortitude and flexibility in people with learning disabilities * and much more Smart But Stuck, Second Edition is a must-read for people with learning disabilities and their families, psychotherapists, social workers, educators, parents, vocational counselors, and college counselors. Please visit www.smartbutstuck.com for more information.

Mainstream gerontological scholarship has taken little heed of people ageing with disability, and they have also been largely overlooked by both disability and ageing policies and service systems. The Handbook on Ageing with Disability is the first to pull together knowledge about the experience of ageing with disability. It provides a broad look at scholarship in this developing field and across different groups of people with disability in order to form a better understanding of commonalities across groups and identify unique facets of ageing within specific groups. Drawing from academic, personal, and clinical perspectives, the chapters address topics stemming from how the ageing with disability experience is framed, the heterogeneity of the population ageing with disability and the disability experience, issues of social exclusion, health and wellness, frailty, later life, and policy contexts for ageing with disability in various countries. Responding to the need to increase access to knowledge in this field, the Handbook provides guideposts for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers about what matters in providing services, developing programmes, and implementing policies that support persons ageing with long-term disabilities and their families.

Captures the importance of belonging and the need for social connectedness- a key driver for positive adjustment post-injury. Highlights the issues around how people with brain injuries are 'managed' in a residential home environment that is predominantly intended for elderly and frail individuals. Covers a decades-long timespan of a survivor of brain injury. Provides much needed support for patients and family members adjusting to life after brain injury.

* Based on blog entries providing an authentic reflection of the lived experience at some of the key stages along the road to recovery. * Author has a medical background which provides an articulate and interesting perspective into the difficulties around providing and withdrawing intensive care therapy, focusing particularly on understanding the wishes of patients with regard to the treatment of critical injuries. * Provides a peer-level approach to helping readers understand and navigate their new lives, from pragmatic concerns about new daily difficulties, to loftier concerns about their new place in life * Provides much needed support for patients and family members adjusting to life after brain injury.

Building on work in feminist studies, queer studies and critical race theory, this volume challenges the universality of propositions about human nature, by questioning the boundaries between predominant neurotypes and 'others', including dyslexics, autistics and ADHDers. This is the first work of its kind to bring cutting-edge research across disciplines to the concept of neurodiversity. It offers in-depth explorations of the themes of cure/prevention/eugenics; neurodivergent wellbeing; cross-neurotype communication; neurodiversity at work; and challenging brain-bound cognition. It analyses the role of neuro-normativity in theorising agency, and a proposal for a new alliance between the Hearing Voices Movement and neurodiversity. In doing so, we contribute to a cultural imperative to redefine what it means to be human. To this end, we propose a new field of enquiry that finds ways to support the inclusion of neurodivergent perspectives in knowledge production, and which questions the theoretical and mythological assumptions that produce the idea of the neurotypical. Working at the crossroads between sociology, critical psychology, medical humanities, critical disability studies, and critical autism studies, and sharing theoretical ground with critical race studies and critical queer studies, the proposed new field - neurodiversity studies - will be of interest to people working in all these areas.

This book explores the complex, evolving relationships between men, masculinities, and social welfare in contemporary context. It is inspired by themes examined in 'Men, Gender Divisions and Welfare', an edited collection published in 1998 by Popay, Hearn, and Edwards. While international policy agendas reflect a growing commitment to critically addressing the relations between men, masculinities, and policy, in policy and popular discussions, societies continue to grapple with the question of 'what to do with men?' This question reflects an ongoing tension between the persistence of men's power and control over welfare and policy development, alongside their ostensible avoidance of welfare services. The collection constitutes an up-to-date account of the gendered and social implications of policy and practice change for men, and their inherent contradictions and complexities, tracing both stability and change over the past 25 years. This book will appeal to students and scholars in diverse fields, particularly in sociology, social policy, applied social sciences, gerontology, gender studies, youth studies, welfare studies, politics, and social geography. Given the volume's empirical attention throughout to both policies and practice developments, it will also be of interest to those training in applied and vocational degrees such as health and social care, social work, family support, and health visiting.

The current literature regarding employment among persons with disabilities produces research results dependent on definitions of work disability, the discipline within which research takes places, the model or paradigm of disability in which the research is framed, the methodology and measures used and the cultural context in which employment occurs. This volume seeks to address those factors which have made describing, predicting and examining the work experience of a person with a disability both different and difficult. Contributors examine less frequently anaylzed aspects of employment for persons with disabilities, and offer a variety of approaches to the conceptualization of work, how they differ across cultures, organizations, and types of disability. Topics covered include examination of range of contextual framing of employment for those with disabilities, well-being, the impact of gender, poverty and education and the collection concludes by examining the future of employment developments and trends and the impacts on inclusion of people with disabilities in the paid workforce.

Have you ever been told you are chatty or fidgety at school? Do you have a constantly whirring mind? Do you 'tune out' and daydream or find it hard to pay attention? ADHD can impact your life in many ways. This positive, self-affirming guide will increase your knowledge about ADHD and empower you in your daily life. The chapters are full of tips, tricks and life hacks so you can better manage your time, harness your creativity, energy and enthusiasm, and make more time for fun! Reflection activities and quizzes will help you better understand yourself and learn strategies on how to manage the intense emotions of rejection sensitivity. You'll learn the fundamentals of great self-care and how to look forward to life beyond school. Learn how ADHD brains work, and tricky concepts like executive functioning. Quick chapter summaries let you pick which sections are most relevant to you right now, and the strategies and visuals are designed for ADHD brains and can be used with support from parents, mentors or teachers. The Teenage Girl's Guide to Living Well with ADHD gives you all you need to build on your strengths and overcome challenges to fully embrace who you are and live your best life.