About Me: My Connection to ASD
My name is Creigh, and I'm just your average (admittedly, slightly stranger than average) undergraduate college student with a penchant for making websites. I have no training whatsoever with regards to autism, counseling, or even website making, for that matter, and I'm not on the spectrum myself. What I do have, however, is a family connection. My sister has Asperger's and she and I are incredibly close, particularly since our parents divorced. I've always tried to be a seeing-eye dog for her in terms of social interaction, and while I'm sure I failed miserably (a fact which she confirmed when she read this page), as a result of that I've become more sensitive to the unspoken rules that govern our society.
My views on autism have always been rather odd for someone without ASD, strongly influenced by WrongPlanet, friends on the spectrum, books by Temple Grandin and Dawn Prince-Hughes, and, most of all, my sister herself. As a result of all these influences, while I recognize that ASD is a disorder, I have a tendency to view it as more of a different way of experiencing the world, one with pitfalls, but also strengths. This view is integrated into the website to some degree, not necessarily purposefully, but in my opinion this view is simply dimension. Readers are almost certainly aware of autism as a disorder that needs curing; they are far less likely to be acquainted with the idea of autism as simply another way of being, one which would benefit from acceptance. It is my hope, then, that this website will better enable family, friends, and instructors to simply appreciate those with ASD for who they are.
The other thing that's helped me write this website is the fact that I'm a fourth year college student myself. I've lived in residence halls for my entire college experience, made friends with my roommate (although that's more to her credit than mine), dealt with more professors than I can count, and navigated the rather bureaucratic college system. So I already have a great deal of hands-on, recent experiences with the college system that I have drawn on in this website. A question about me that will inevitably arise in the minds of readers of this website is, is she (yes, I'm a she) on the spectrum herself? While I think it's safe to say I'm not a terribly typical neurotypical, I'm not on the spectrum.
Despite my previous exposure to autism - having a sister on the spectrum, many (high functioning) friends, babysitting autistic children, and mentoring a woman with moderate autism, to name just a few - I have to admit, I learned a lot when I made this website. I think what I learned most of all is how little I know, which I think actually makes me wiser now than I was before (just call me Socrates). I have honestly grown from the experience. I have always been a strong supporter of underrepresented populations, whether it be children (I swear, a children's rights movement is just waiting to happen - how many other groups are given so few legal rights?) or, in this case, people with ASD and hope to integrate that into my career.
I'm going to be honest - I felt rather uncomfortable putting this website out here. After all, who am I to be giving someone with autism or their parents advice? Who am I to be telling friends and instructors what people with autism are like? I was so concerned about sticking my nose where it didn't belong that I almost didn't make this website. That said, this resource had to start somewhere and if it's my neck on the chopping block, so be it. It is my hope that even though I will (and almost certainly have) make mistakes in this website, that people who do know what they're talking about will step up and contribute their own input. If you're one of those people, please contact me and I'll do my best to integrate your advice into the website.
I hope you enjoy the website! Thanks for reading!
My views on autism have always been rather odd for someone without ASD, strongly influenced by WrongPlanet, friends on the spectrum, books by Temple Grandin and Dawn Prince-Hughes, and, most of all, my sister herself. As a result of all these influences, while I recognize that ASD is a disorder, I have a tendency to view it as more of a different way of experiencing the world, one with pitfalls, but also strengths. This view is integrated into the website to some degree, not necessarily purposefully, but in my opinion this view is simply dimension. Readers are almost certainly aware of autism as a disorder that needs curing; they are far less likely to be acquainted with the idea of autism as simply another way of being, one which would benefit from acceptance. It is my hope, then, that this website will better enable family, friends, and instructors to simply appreciate those with ASD for who they are.
The other thing that's helped me write this website is the fact that I'm a fourth year college student myself. I've lived in residence halls for my entire college experience, made friends with my roommate (although that's more to her credit than mine), dealt with more professors than I can count, and navigated the rather bureaucratic college system. So I already have a great deal of hands-on, recent experiences with the college system that I have drawn on in this website. A question about me that will inevitably arise in the minds of readers of this website is, is she (yes, I'm a she) on the spectrum herself? While I think it's safe to say I'm not a terribly typical neurotypical, I'm not on the spectrum.
Despite my previous exposure to autism - having a sister on the spectrum, many (high functioning) friends, babysitting autistic children, and mentoring a woman with moderate autism, to name just a few - I have to admit, I learned a lot when I made this website. I think what I learned most of all is how little I know, which I think actually makes me wiser now than I was before (just call me Socrates). I have honestly grown from the experience. I have always been a strong supporter of underrepresented populations, whether it be children (I swear, a children's rights movement is just waiting to happen - how many other groups are given so few legal rights?) or, in this case, people with ASD and hope to integrate that into my career.
I'm going to be honest - I felt rather uncomfortable putting this website out here. After all, who am I to be giving someone with autism or their parents advice? Who am I to be telling friends and instructors what people with autism are like? I was so concerned about sticking my nose where it didn't belong that I almost didn't make this website. That said, this resource had to start somewhere and if it's my neck on the chopping block, so be it. It is my hope that even though I will (and almost certainly have) make mistakes in this website, that people who do know what they're talking about will step up and contribute their own input. If you're one of those people, please contact me and I'll do my best to integrate your advice into the website.
I hope you enjoy the website! Thanks for reading!
