A great book that helps to understand Asperger's in girls is 'Aspergirls' by Rudy Simone. I haven't finished reading it yet (been too busy!), but I have found it very helpful in understanding my daughter. I have one daughter with Asperger's, she is nearly 9 years old, and one who is most likely going to be diagnosed with it soon, and she is 4. I think that some of the symptoms may be different in girls, but it depends on so many factors, like personality, upbringing, biology, etc. It was my understanding that boys with Asperger's tend to be more hyperactive than girls, who tend to internalise more, but my daughter is hyperactive, so it's hard to say! My daughter is very outwardly emotional - she screams and cries and laughs very loudly, no matter where we are. However, she does internalise quite a bit, too - she often comes out with things that seem to have come from nowhere, but she has clearly been thinking about them for a while. She cares very much for other people, and she is beginning to understand that other people have emotions just like she does - something she has found hard to grasp. She is not selfish, just not aware. She is obsessive and compulsive about hoarding, and food, which is something we need to focus on, but no one knows what to do about it at this stage, short of locking our fridge and cupboards. Up until recently she has taken around 3 hours to go to sleep each night - she is now taking Melatonin, and now she goes to sleep within 30 minutes of going to bed, which is a huge achievement for us. Oh, and she has broken the same arm, in the same place, three times in 9 weeks - she is hyperactive and just doesn't think to be careful. The first time she was going downhill on a scooter and couldn't work out how to stop - so she put her foot down...he he. The second time the bone dislocated due to it not being rested properly. The third time was last week, when she simply slipped in the mud and landed on it. So she is not particularly cautious, except in some of her school work. She is quite intelligent though, and though she is a fantastic reader, she hates to read!
kerrie, VIC, DD 12/8/03, DD 12/10/05, DD 14/9/07, DD 4/1/10
