What's "Social Thinking?" (Autism Spectrum Disorder in Burnaby and Vancouver, BC)

I often start sessions asking the parents of adults I see to define , as they understand it, autism spectrum disorder or Asperger's Disorder as many call it. I then define it myself, decribing issues relating to "social thinking."

Hrre is what Michelle Garcia Winner says about social thinking:
"Social Thinking is what we do when we share space with others and when sending an email, sitting in a classroom, lining up at the grocery store, reading a work of fiction, watching a funny video clip, participating in a business meeting, driving in traffic, and a host of other daily activities that involve our social interpretation and related reactions.  We consider the context; take in the thoughts, emotions and intentions of the people with whom we are interacting and use that information to determine how we respond. How we think about people affects how we behave, which in turn affects how others respond to us, which in turn affects our own emotional internal and external responses. It's an incredibly complex process that most of us take for granted."

From https://www.socialthinking.com/Articles?name=Introduction%20to%20Social%20Thinking


My best example of social thinking is coming toa cross walk and looking, very briefly, for a second or two, at the face and eyes of the driver about to take the turn and making a jusdgement about them. Will they stop? Will they wait for me? Will they ignore the rules of the road? and thendeciding what to go...cross, or wait. These are the kinds of daily decisions we make by reading what is in other people's heads, and making social decision based upon their eye contact, facial expression, posture and any other social hints I might find in my view.

This kind of social thinking comes natuarally to most of us, but to those with high functioning autism, what use to be called "Asperger's Disorder," these decisions and this swift and non-verbal communication is difficult. Sometimes just slow. And over the years, as they have many social experiences that don't work out, were misread and lead to less than hopeful results, they often develop anxiety about social thinking, about taking action in social situation, and can become isolated and simply not develop appropriate skills as they grow.

an initial and critical component to interventions for children, teens or adults with autism spectrum disorder, ASD or Aspeger's, is to get an understanding of these basics. To know what ASD is well enough to describe it, recognize it, and then and only then do we move on to doing something about it....when and where we want to.

Michelle Garcia Winner describes Social Thinking interventions on the links below, and I invite you to go to those web pages and get an understanding yourself. In my own practice, where I see children, teens and adults for autism spectrum disorder diagnosis as well as treatment, I use Michelle's materials throughout the intervention process. She has an excellent set of curriculum materials for home and school, and this is a resource no parent or adult with autism should be without.

Vistit here website at www.socialthinking.com

Other articles that might be of interest include these:

• The Social Communication Dance: The Four Steps of Communication
• Social Thinking®: A Developmental Treatment Approach for Students with Social Learning/Social Pragmatic Challenges 
• Explaining Social Thinking to Others: The Big Picture in Sound Bites
• Social Behavior Mapping: Connecting Behavior, Emotions, and Consequences Across the Day

For more information about my practice in Burnaby and Vancouver, where I see children, adolescents and adults for diagnosis and treatment, please visit my website at:

www.relatedminds.com

http://www.psychologists.bc.ca/users/jimroche

https://therapists.psychologytoday.com/rms/70682

I am a Registered Psycholgist in BC, and a member of the RASP list of ACTBC Behaviour Interventionists. Services to children and adolescents with ASD are often covered by BC Ministry funding.

 

Behaviour Interventionist Burnaby / Vancouver

I provide behaviour interventionist services in my Burnaby office for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD and Asperger's disorder. I am a member of the ACT (Autism Community Training) RASP list and my services are covered under minsitry funding programs for children and teens.

Most of my services are focused on specific behavioural problems which parents and consultants are having a hard time dealing with. I provide parent training, consultation and some school based training and consltation. I have workd as the behaviour management specialist for several school districts and as a provincial autism consultant through the Provinical Outreach Program for Autism and Related Services (POPARD). I am deeply familiar with school based programs and have supervised and cnsulted with many professionals in local districts.

Two other things that I provide in my pracritce:

First, I provide autism diagnosist services. If you suspect your child has autism an appointment can usually be set up within 10 days to 2 weeks. I prioritize my cases with individuals with autism spectrum disorder because I am aware how few services there are here in BC.  Please visit my website for more information on arranging an appointment for an autism diagnostic consultation. I require an initial 1 hour session to discuss current symptoms and history. The cost of this session is $175.00 and this is part of the overall costs if we decide to move forward with testing.

I also see children and teens in my office for individual therapy. This therapy usually is focused on issues of communications and follows the structure of interventions you will find in the work of Michelle Winner ( Social Thinking). Often these sessions include a period of play therapy, some didactic training and skills development, and then a period of feedback with parents so that they will understand the process and be able to impliment supportive skills trainng in the home.

In addition to diagnosising and providing therapy for autism spectrum disorder / Aspegers disorder, I also focus much of my practice on ADHD and executive dysfunction issues. These are often co-morbid with a diagnosis of ASD.

Finally, I not only provide autism spectrum disorder services to children and teens, but also to adults as well, and see patients from across the lifespan.

Please visit my website at www.relatedminds.com or http://www.relatedminds.com/autism and contact me if you have any questions I can help you with.

Adult Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Asperger's Disorder

The diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), sometimes referred to as "Asperger's Disorder" can be very difficult for a family practitioner  due to the amount of time and the instruments and tools used to complete a comprehensive examination.

While many people make a determination by filling out an on-line form, the diagnsis is actually far more complex. In British Columbia an "offical" diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, especially high functioning autism which until recently was referred to as Asperger's Disorder - sometimes also diagnosed as "non-Verbal LEarning Disorder" requires several specific tests. For children under six a team is required, including a psychologist, physician and a speech pathologist. The reason a team is required is that autism can often look like other disorders, and other disorders can often look just like autism. Here the Ministry of Children and Families also requires specific tests be used. These include AT LEAST the ADOS- Autism Diagnossit Observation System, which is a procedural test that looks at current symptoms and behaviours, and the ADI-R, the Autism Diagnositic Interview Revised, which is a highly structured history. These are necessary for recognition of ASD by schools and the ministry.

When assessing/testing adult I use these same tests, as an autism diagnosis in BC can be used for obtaining tax credits, social services and most often accomodations at school, college, university and the workplace.

In addition to these specific tests and procedures I also administer a series of neuropsychological tests and personality assessments in order to rule out other possible causes of the symptoms. Additionally individuals with autism spectrum disorder/ adult Asperger's can also have co-morbid disorders, such as depression, anxiety, OCD and ADHD. This comprehensive look at your symptoms and hisotry helps guide treatment choices.

The cost of such an assessment is $1,200-1,600, depending upon the complexity. Regretfully, these costs are not covered by provincial MSP (medical Service Plan) but some costs may be covered by your extended health care plan.

My schedule allows me to see most individuals who are seeking an assessment for adult autism spectrum disorder within 3-4 weeks, as I try not to schedule out more than 4-6 weeks in advance, and prioritize adult autism spectrum disorder assessments as there are few professionals in the lower mainland with the ability or experience necessary to do these assessments.

For more information on adult autism spectrum disorder assessments please visit my web page and contact me by phone or by completing the form on the web page. I am a Registered Psychologist in British Columbia with over 25 years experience in the field of autism, including working as a special education teacher for students with autism spectrum disorder, as a school district behaviour management specialist and as a provincial autism consultant. I have also worked as a rehabilitation psychologist and neuropsychologist with adults returning to the workplace. This hands on experience with individuals across the spectrum of ages and development provides me with a unique set of skills and knowledge base.

Web page:  www.relatedminds.com
http://www.relatedminds.com/autism/
http://www.relatedminds.com/adult-autism-and-aspergers-disorder/