Red Shirt
Name: Sally

5 Favorite Hobbies:

1. Reading
2. Watching nature documentaries
3. Researching frogs
4. Playing around with sound design on the computer
5. Doodling on her tablet

5 Favorite Things:

1. Frogs (would catch one and keep it as a pet for one day before letting it go)
2. Fast food
3. Animated shorts
4. Sports (Baseball’s her favorite sport)
5. Even with being caught up on new technology, she has a soft spot for tech from the 90’s and early 00’s (2000’s).

5 Strengths:

1. Friendly
2. Interested in all kinds of people, autism or otherwise
3. Detailed oriented
4. Organised
5. Never afraid to ask for assistance; whether it’s for her or for other people

5 Weaknesses:

1. Even with a tablet, she would still be afraid of whether or not she will say the right words
2. She cannot talk (oftentimes would wonder what she would sound like)
3. Difficult to make clear eye contact; May look like she’s not paying attention or not interested but she in most cases, she always is interested
4. Would...

Name: Arnold

5 Favorite Hobbies:

1. Catching bugs
2. Puzzles
3. Putting together models with his parents
4. Baseball
5. Yo-Yo

5 Favorite Things:

1. Hotdogs and pizza are his favorite foods
2. School and academics
3. Computer games
4. Comic books
5. People

5 Strengths:

1. Loves to talk and being around people! Since his parents own a local comic book store, there are a lot of people that Arnold finds very interesting, oftentimes based on what the content provides in the bookstore
2. He isn’t afraid to say what’s on his mind
3. A genius in math and science
4. Can be a total goof at times getting a few laughs here and there
5. Very good at sports (baseball being his favorite sport)

5 Weaknesses:

1. Very closed minded when it comes to food
2. Doesn’t know when to stop talking about his favorite things at times (even though he admits that he needs help in some areas)
3. He rambles on whenever he’s afraid in trying something new. Whether that’s with food or going to a new place. Even if it’s...

The connection between gut and brain

In every language of our planet, people use proverbs connecting gut, brain and feeling with each other. We may follow a “gut feeling” or feel “butterflies in the stomach” when in love. Scientists have in recent years uncovered that these may be more than just words.

When a gut feeling makes us anxious or nervous, that signal might actually come from the second largest concentration of nerve-cells in our body (besides the brain): Our intestines. Discoveries about the “brain in the belly” have revolutionized our understanding of how diet, digestion, mood and health are connected with each other.

The long standing medical consensus was, that problems like depression or anxiety contributed to gastrointestinal symptoms. Now there is significant evidence, turning the image of culprit and victim upside down.

These findings give a much better explanation for why a disproportional number of people with digestive issues...

Getting hungry just thinking about it.

When I was much younger, I would eat nothing but peanut butter jelly sandwiches, cereal, pizza pockets, and spaghetti. That’s basically it. Today, I’m eating a whole wide variety of things to eat!

Food may play a huge roll in the autism spectrum; remember the part about having a routine and that change is very difficult to those who have autism? Well, that’s no different when it comes to food. You get so used to eating the same thing that it’s hard to expand the taste buds and try new food items.

How did I go from a picky eater to eating just about anything the world feeds me? My parents encouraged me to try new things; if I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t have it for a while, but then as I grew older, I started to like the food item I tried. It may sound like the fact that we’re all the same when it comes to food, but autism takes a much longer time to be flexible with different tastes. Never give up when...