Temple Grandin, Margaret M. Scariano "I was an autistic child".

Author: Temple Grandin, Margaret M. Scariano Original title: Emergence: Labeled Autistic Genre: biographical Medical topic: childhood autism Year of first publication: 1986 (worldwide), 1995 (Poland) Description: Temple did not speak until she was 3.5 years old; she ignored her mother, avoided hugs, liked to spin in circles, and hit other children. The psychiatrist’s diagnosis was autism, with the comment that it could not be cured and that the child would require constant care, preferably in a closed institution. Fortunately, her mother did not give up so easily and fought for Temple’s normalcy. Against all odds and with great difficulty, Temple attended school. She did not understand the world around her and did not socialize with her peers, who often teased her because of her antisocial behavior. While staying in the countryside with her aunt and uncle, she discovered her passion—cattle and the “poskrom.” From then on, her mind was fixated on methods of calming animals. She built a "squeezer" for herself—a machine that, through controlled pressure, replaced her need for hugs and calmed her down. Perhaps thanks to this, she managed to graduate from college and complete her studies, which seems impossible for an autistic person. Temple has undoubtedly shown that there is hope for autistic children by proving, through her own example, that autistic traits can be modified and controlled with support, care, understanding, acceptance, appropriately high expectations, and help from those around them. This book is one of a kind, as it presents autism not through the eyes of parents, psychiatrists, or educators, but through the eyes of the autistic patient herself. I highly recommend reading it!