Finding Ben

"An introspective, honest account that may offer solace...to other families coping with challenging children." - "Kirkus Reviews". "[LaSalle's] story is one of human triumph over adversity and ignorance...It has a happy ending, but there will be moments when readers are likely to cry before they share her happiness." - Tony Attwood, Ph.D., Director, The Asperger's Syndrome Clinic.Barbara LaSalle's first son, Ben, seemed to be an extraordinarily gifted child. For the first few years of his life, he amazed his mother with his brilliance and creativity, speaking in full sentences before age one and reading competently by age two. Yet, lurking beneath this boy genius' amazing abilities were a crippling social aloofness and fear of change. For years, she searched for a diagnosis for her son, who, unbeknownst to her, suffered from Asperger's Syndrome - the "little grownup" disorder - a neurological condition considered a high-functioning form of autism.In this frank, emotionally written account, Barbara LaSalle reveals what it's really like to parent a child with a neurological disorder.She paints a powerfully honest portrait of how a mother's love can turn into bitterness at having to raise a special-needs child and how, by opening herself to the wisdom of others, she can at last learn to love her child - and herself - once again. Barbara LaSalle, M.A., is a marriage and family therapist who runs a psychotherapy practice in Los Angeles. A tireless advocate for people with mental illness, she is a frequent lecturer, workshop leader, and documentary filmmaker.