"Someone with Asperger’s really is like you, just more extreme..."

I share this today, in hopes that one person understands more about Aspergers Syndrome, a high functioning form of Autism. I saw this quote, and thought it fit perfectly with my daughter, Erica. "Someone with Asperger’s really is like you, just more extreme..."

Erica is extreme in everything she does...Extremely loving, Extremely creative, Extremely smart, Extremely talkative, Extremely inquisitive, Extremely honest, Extremely funny, Extremely animated, Extremely demanding, Extremely passionate about things that are important to her.

As parents of Erica, we have learned to embrace the extreme in her, and help her to fit into this world that is not always so easy to navigate...(sometimes for any of us) We are often told how lucky she is to have us, and we quickly respond with, "No...we feel lucky to have her, she has taught us all so much."

A little background: Erica was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome at the age of 4, but we saw many signs of it much earlier in her life. Not sure what to make of it, we started narrowing it down to what it wasn't...it wasn't ADHD, Hyperactivity, or OCD, or SID. When I read the characteristics of Aspergers Syndrome, I felt like someone had met Erica, and then told me what they observed. Here is an article that goes over some of those characteristics:

Symptoms during childhood

Parents often first notice the symptoms of Asperger's syndrome when their child starts preschool and begins to interact with other children. Children with Asperger's syndrome may:

Not pick up on social cues and may lack inborn social skills, such as being able to read others' body language, start or maintain a conversation, and take turns talking.
Dislike any changes in routines.
Appear to lack empathy.
Be unable to recognize subtle differences in speech tone, pitch, and accent that alter the meaning of others’ speech. Thus, your child may not understand a joke or may take a sarcastic comment literally. Likewise, his or her speech may be flat and difficult to understand because it lacks tone, pitch, and accent.
Have a formal style of speaking that is advanced for his or her age. For example, the child may use the word "beckon" instead of "call" or the word "return" instead of "come back."
Avoid eye contact or stare at others.
Have unusual facial expressions or postures.
Be preoccupied with only one or few interests, which he or she may be very knowledgeable about. Many children with Asperger's syndrome are overly interested in parts of a whole or in unusual activities, such as designing houses, drawing highly detailed scenes, or studying astronomy. They may show an unusual interest in certain topics such as snakes, names of stars, or dinosaurs.²
Talk a lot, usually about a favorite subject. One-sided conversations are common. Internal thoughts are often verbalized.
Have delayed motor development. Your child may be late in learning to use a fork or spoon, ride a bike, or catch a ball. He or she may have an awkward walk. Handwriting is often poor.
Have heightened sensitivity and become overstimulated by loud noises, lights, or strong tastes or textures. For more information about these symptoms, see sensory integration dysfunction.