Barbara R. Lester LCSW
Photo by Thom Gourley
Hi. Thanks for stopping by my site! My name is Barbara Lester and by profession I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. In my day job I am the Social Work Discipline Lead for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health for Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, however I am writing in a personal capacity not representing Primary Children's. I have over twenty-five years of experience providing psychotherapy for children, adolescents and adults with a broad variety of concerns including autism and Asperger's, anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and behavior and learning problems. I currently specialize in working with children and adolescents on the autism spectrum, in particular those with high functioning autism or Asperger's Syndrome, providing parenting classes, social skills groups, and individual and family therapy. I also have a family member on the autism spectrum – my father who turns ninety this year! I believe promoting acceptance and understanding of autism.
I recently wrote a workbook for children who have a parent on the autism spectrum, and I develop applications for smart phones (along with my wonderful husband and son who do the programming!) on such psychotherapy related topics as anxiety, depression, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, anger, and behavior management. My most recent app "Let's Go!" is free so if you have an Android phone, please download it let me know what you think.
Follow along with me on my blog: "ASDSpecialist: Autism Spectrum Help." I have learned so much over my lifetime of personal and professional experiences with those on the autism spectrum, that I have set myself a goal to share all of information I have learned on my blog.
"My Parent Has An Autism Spectrum Disorder"
My new book "My Parent Has An Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Workbook for Children and Teens [Paperback]" is Now Available for order at Jessica Kingsley Publishers, or visit the Store page on this website to order the book through Amazon.com.
Discovering that a family member is on the autism spectrum is an experience that affects the entire family, and can particularly disrupt the family when it is a parent receiving the diagnosis. The situation can be difficult to explain to children, especially if a parent has not fully grasped the implication themselves, and any adult facing this challenge will be in need of a helping hand. This workbook has been designed with precisely this purpose in mind. It will strengthen relationships between parents with ASDs and their children by facilitating understanding of behaviour and situations that all the family will previously have noticed but not understood, and shows how to develop effective problem solving strategies. Chapters cover everything from dealing with the initial diagnosis to understanding special interests, difficulties with social skills and figures of speech, and the need for rules and routines. Every chapter concludes with a worksheet for parent and child to complete together, which encourages mutual understanding and fosters healthy relationships. This book is an essential tool for any family with a parent on the autistic spectrum, and is equally suitable for children and teens who are on the autistic spectrum and those who are not. It will also be of interest to professionals and anyone else working with a family dealing with autism.
∗ Visits to ASDspecialist.com since 01/30/2011∗
