978-1572305441

Teddy 109
eating our pasta at the table would imagine we were talking about girls,
sports, or the latest gossip at the office. Instead we were talking about
being autistic, what that was like from the inside, and what was left of
the disorder as part of his personality. He felt that the only residual impairment
he experienced was anxiety in social situations. He had dated
girls, intended to marry eventually, but felt a little anxious in group settings.
He was animated, funny, made jokes about himself, used lots of
gestures. Yes, he was a bit stiff and formal but hardly different from
many people his age. Was Fred normal? How different was he from millions
of others who grew up as typical children? His development was
indeed a triumph. Admittedly, this type of outcome is quite rare, but it’s
not impossible. In my study, it occurred only in individuals with autism
who were quite bright. What was so remarkable in Fred’s case were the
dreadful interventions he had received as a child, so I could not even
begin to guess what had made a difference in his situation. One clue,
though, was provided by the story of Hershel.
Hershel’s outcome was perhaps not as spectacular as Fred’s but was
amazing in its own way. He lived with his mother in the suburbs and
was enrolled at the local university. He was taking history and a few
general liberal arts subjects, but he was barely passing and was receiving
extra tutoring. I went to his home, a modest bungalow set among
mature trees on a quiet street. It soon became clear to me that this was a
deeply religious family. Hershel was a quiet young man and wore a
yarmulke. He spoke little and answered my questions politely but succinctly.
He lived an isolated life but attended synagogue regularly. He
had some friends but saw them only through the synagogue. He had few
hobbies or outside interests. He was unclear about his future but was
very concerned about his marks at university. He was perhaps too concerned
about graduating to the exclusion of all else. He did not see the
degree as a means to an end but an end in itself.
Still I was astonished at how well he had done over the years. There
was no possibility that the early diagnosis was wrong, as I discovered
when I later reviewed the chart. Hershel had had many autistic symptoms
as a child and was reported to have a fairly severe learning disability.
That made his academic accomplishments all the more remarkable.
What I remember most vividly about the interview, however, was
Hershel’s mother. She was a forceful woman, though small in stature.
We sat at the dining room table, surrounded by family photographs of
children and relatives from the “old country.” She talked vividly about
those early years, the pain, the anxiety, and the worry about the future.