by Debra Muzikar In the last decade the world has changed dramatically. Today’s teens unlike prior generations have grown up with iphones, ear buds, tablets, and apps. Although many teens may be digitally savvy they may lack the personal skills needed to make new friends or land a job. Smile &…

“What does it mean to be autistic?” Amy Goodman “It means you have special talents and skills inside you,” Owen Suskind “What are those talents?” Amy Goodman “Being a good artist, and a piano player, and a good writer, author, and a storyteller, and a possib…

by Debra Muzikar Editor’s Note: The official trailer for Normal People Scare Me Too was released yesterday. James Jagow’s created the musical score for the trailer. It’s 2002. Keri Bowers is raising her 14-year old autistic son, Taylor, in Thousand Oaks, a suburban community in …

Living Loud on Land and Sea By James Jagow I was born with high-functioning autism which impairs social functioning. Communication for me was a grueling effort, but it was through music that I eventually was able to be heard. I was finally coming through loud and clear! Public school was difficult h…

Acknowledging Mastery at Autistry: Certification. We teach skills as an integral part of working with students at Autistry. If a student wants to make a pillow, they learn to sew. If a student wants a bookshelf, they learn woodworking. A model tank, they learn model building, painting, decaling, wea…

“At the end of the day this film is not about autism; it’s about love. Being more caring to the person next to you; being compassionate. This is a movie about love through a different lens; through the eyes of autism.” Carolina Groppa By Debra Muzikar (This is an excerpt from an i…

Humor has developmental milestones. By Debra Muzikar Driving with Kevin we spot this sign. “Slow children at play,” I say. “Kevin how would you interpret that sign – does it mean the children are slow or are we to slow the car down?” I ask. Kevin laughs. He understands…

By Mabz Beet 2015 is considered by many to be the year transgender people and the issues they are faced with were brought to mainstream attention. Transparent, a show that has employed more transgender people than any show in the United States, returned for a second season. Laverne Cox continued to …

“Life and death, energy and peace. If I stop today it was still worth it. Even the terrible mistakes that I made and would have unmade if I could. The pains that have burned me and scarred my soul, it was worth it, for having been allowed to walk where I’ve walked, which was to hell on E…

By Leanne Libas There are two different categories that people fall into: those who make New Year’s resolutions and those who don’t. Do I believe in resolutions? Yes, just as long as they are reasonable and attainable. The problem I usually encounter with New Year’s resolutions is how I utterly fail…

By Debra Muzikar 2016 is starting out to be a very good year. Last week I received  the most comprehensive and practical book for those working with young adults with autism or learning differences aged 16 – 26. The book is called “Autism and Learning Differences: An Active Learning Teac…

“There’s this one thing a friend of the Dalai Lama said after being tortured and imprisoned: to solve his imprisonment, he had compassion for his torturers, not anger, but compassion. Replace anger with compassion and you get a happier person,” Ben By Nancy Lea Speer It is said that if a Great B…

Many therapies with the intent to cure are dangerous to our health. We are not science experiments. We are human beings. We are your children. By Jocelyn Eastman Part 3 in a 3-part series Part 1 – I am Standing Right Here – Don’t Speak for Me Part 2 – I am Standing Right Here…

Being autistic is not about living in a vacuum, sucking in everything around you, living in an existence shutout from your environment. If anything, the environment becomes more real, more painful, more evident. By Jocelyn Eastman Part 1 in a 3-Part Series TW/CW: Upsetting dialogue, discussion of p…