Autism and the God Connection: Redefining the Autistic Experience Through Extraordinary Accounts of Spiritual Giftedness
About this ebook
One in 68 US children have an autism spectrum disorder, and with countless parenting books helping families care for children with special needs, Autism and the God Connection is the crucial, spiritual look at understanding a child with autism. Helping parents realize their child's unique spirit and reaffirm that every one of us is a blessing, this is an inspirational resource to discovering the intellect, beauty, and complexities of children with autism.
Through countless interviews, William Stillman documents extraordinary examples of spiritual giftedness, and boldly challenges our traditionally held beliefs about people with disabilities. Readers will discover hope, comfort, inspiration, and love through these affirming anecdotes of ordinary families.
About the author
William Stillman is the author of Demystifying the Autistic Experience: A Humanistic Introduction for Parents, Caregivers, and Educators, which has been highly praised by the autism self-advocacy community. His other titles include The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Asperger's Syndrome: Help, Hope, and Guidance and The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Bipolar Disorder: Professional, Reassuring Advice to Help You Understand and Cope. Stillman also writes a column, "Through the Looking Glass," for the national quarterly magazine The Autism Perspective and is on the publication's advisory board.
As an adult with Asperger's Syndrome, a mild "cousin" of autism, Stillman's message of reverence and respect has touched thousands through his acclaimed autism workshops and private consultations. His national television appearances include CNN Medical News and the Maury Povich Show. Stillman has a BS in Education from Millersville University in Pennsylvania, and has worked to support people with different ways of being since 1987. He was formerly the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, Office of Mental Retardation's statewide point person for children with intellectual impairment, mental health issues, and autism. Stillman is at the forefront of the autism self-advocacy movement and is founder of the Pennsylvania Autism Self-Advocacy Coalition, which endeavors to educate and advise state and local government, law enforcement, educators, and the medical community. He serves on Pennsylvania's Autism Task Force and is on several autism and Asperger's advisory boards including the Youth Advocate Programs' National Autism Advisory Committee. Stillman has collaborated with Temple University to develop a relationship-based curriculum for Youth Advocate Programs which will set the national standard by which mental health workers will be trained to support children and adolescents with autism. He is also the coordinator for a Pennsylvania-based meeting group of individuals who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication. Stillman is coauthor of several successful books about his life-long passion, The Wizard of Oz. He website address is www.williamstillman.com.
