Review: Succeeding with Autism: Hear My Voice by Judith H. Cohen

"Succeeding with Autism: Hear My Voice" by Judith H. Cohen is a hope-giving read for those who love a child on the autism spectrum. The author is a child advocate lawyer holding an education position at Adelphi University in New York. She first met the subject of the book, "Michael" (names changed for privacy) while interviewing him for placement in the math program at her school. His subsequent success encouraged her to visit various people throughout Michael's life and to compile those interviews in a book.

The book is opened by an introduction from Dr. Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who has succeeded in making a career for herself in agricultural design. Going into the first chapter the author tells of her first meeting with the awkward boy and his mother, and her discovery of his special education needs and diagnosis of autism. Despite this, he had an excellent academic record and was admitted to their advanced college math course. He eventually went on to graduate with a Master's Degree in Math Education and Computer Sciences, which has landed him in a position as a private-school secondary math teacher (hoping one day to become a college math professor).

From there the reader learns about Michael throughout his lifetime from the point of view of his family members, teachers, caregivers, and friends. The author tells of his difficulty fitting in with the other college students, their reactions when they learned of his disability, his attempts at extra-curricular activities, and the complications Michael had learning to live on his own and take care of himself. Interestingly enough, most people admitted finding something "off" about Michael, but many of the mathematics teachers found him perfectly normal; which seems to give credence to the idea that many scientists and mathematics geniuses seem a little absent-minded and "different". The only thing that seemed to bother people was his well-intentioned bluntness and his habit of excessively asking questions. The author even goes into an episode in which Michael's mood began to falter and he became obsessed with a female friend (though interactions with the opposite sex have been limited for him).

Mrs. Cohen also describes how his parents met and Michael's early childhood and eventual diagnosis of autism as a non-speaking, obsessive-compulsive pre-schooler. His mother was very dedicated and refused to institutionalize him. At 6, Michael received a baby brother which he has since resented. Michael finally began to speak, but due to misguided care he became a very depressed and angry (yet intelligent) grade-schooler prone to extreme tantrums. At 9, after becoming suicidal and too violent to control, he was hospitalized. He learned to control his behavior and subsequently only had occasional tantrums around his family (even up into the college years) when over-whelmed or attempting to get something he wanted. The author goes on to describe his various school situations and how sweet and helpful Michael always seemed to be at school.

As a side-note, I am the mother of two children on the autistic spectrum. While I know it seems easier to do everything for an autistic child, it is better to teach them how to do things on their own. Michael's Mom made the mistake of pampering him to the point of spoiling him. Subsequently, Michael to this day feels his mother should be doing nearly everything for him (even as a grown man) that he can do for himself. When she began refusing to pamper him any longer, he began to harbor extreme anger for her. I also know that while there are many things that can't be controlled (painful noises, confusion, obsessions, etc...) which can cause a melt-down for an autistic person; more times than not, the autistic person is using the tantrum as a means to get something they want (as a toddler does), instead of communicating their needs as they've been taught. It is sad that many people excuse bad behavior in autistic people rationalizing that they can't control themselves-instead of refusing to 'give-in' and teaching them how to communicate in an acceptable manner. This is evident in Michael, as he always controlled his tantrums until he came in contact with his mother; in which case, he became violent with her. Unfortunately, Michael's Mom either could not or would not take control early-on to let Michael know she was the boss and would not accept his tantrums (as others had done). This is difficult for many parents and teachers, and hind-sight is 20/20.

After reading this book and learning the different points of view, I feel that Michael needs to let up on his demands of his mother (as he is now a capable adult-autism or not), apologize for the terribly unjustified way he treated her growing up, and thank her for all she did for him-because if she had not been the advocate that she was not only would he not be a college graduate and teacher, he would have probably been stuck in an institution or ended up an unemployed basket-case living at home for the rest of his life.

Mrs. Cohen goes on to describe Michael's job-hunting difficulties, and his later problems in trying to relate to and teach his students as an adult in his twenties. The author tells of Michael's struggle to deal with his parents' divorce and his stepfamilies and brother. Other than his oddities as a teacher and his anger toward and dependency on his mother (who still loves and remains devoted to him), Michael seems to be a great success story that can give many parents with hopelessly-autistic children an optimistic outlook (especially if they can avoid the early childhood pitfalls of Michael's parents).

The book is ended with a short reflection from Michael about his own life and a final note from the author. "Succeeding with Autism" has been an informative and well-written book. It's obvious the author has thoroughly researched her subject. This book is recommended for anyone who loves an autistic child (especially parents and teachers). It is a lesson that no disabled child should be written-off as hopeless.

"Succeeding with Autism: Hear My Voice" by Judith H. Cohen (Paperback, ISBN: 1-84310-793-7) was released in 2005 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers. It is 240 pages long, including an index. The book is listed at $19.95 and can be obtained through any bookseller or book website (usually at a discount).