William Stillman - Beyond the Ordinary Dot Net

~~~ William Stillman ~~~
William makes it beautifully clear that autism need not be defined "an affliction endured by sufferers"
but as a truly unique and individual experience to be respected and appreciated by all.

William Stillman, author of several books demystifying the Autistic Experience, giving hope, guidance, & understanding to parents & care givers enabling them to cope. We focused on his latest book, "Autism and the God Connection" because William gives us with this book a most needed and valuable gift... he uncovers the beauty of a sublime connection to realities hidden only because of fear, dogma, and insensitivity. These attitudes are a great burden on the fragility of beings attuned to different frequencies, the good news is that by widening our perceptions and grasping what people called different are here to teach us, we gain immeasurably.
Different, uncommon, is never 'less-than' we must always remember William's mantra "Presume Intellect."

As an adult with Asperger’s Syndrome, a mild form of autism, William understands the autism phenomena. He works intuitively and thinks in streams of pictures, "I filter out nothing, I am constantly perplexed at what other people don't perceive." William was intensely sensitive as a little boy and had visceral reactions to different types of music, so much so that over time he became emotionally detached. By the time he was a teenager he had become hardened, cynical, and inches away from taking his own life.

William has a B.S. in Education and has worked to support people with different ways of being since 1987. Formerly with Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare-Office of Mental Retardation, as statewide point person for children with intellectual impairment, mental health issues, and autism. William is the founder of the Pennsylvania Autism Self-Advocacy Coalition. On his website he has many resources for you, articles, and more. www.williamstillman.com

"These children know what is going to happen in the future, they have connections with animals and nature, it's very similar to the native American aspect, the way indigenous peoples are connected with nature. "A wild rabbit stared into a house in the city for long periods for many days. Finally the man asked his autistic daughter what was the rabbit saying and she answered "be calm about autism." and the rabbit was gone."

If anything you read in his book, or hear on this program, pertains to your child and you are willing to share your stories using a pseudonym or first name only, please contact Bill through e-mail. He has been gathering anecdotes from parents and care givers from all over the country, and is still soliciting your miraculous true stories of spiritual inspiration and affirmation for future publications. See also two of William's other books:
The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Asperger's Syndrome: Help Hope Guidance

The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Bipolar Disorder: Professional, Reassuring Advice to Help You Understand And Cope

Autism and the God Connection

The Soul of Autsim

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Listen Now	July 15th, 2008 "A Remarkable Bridge To Hope" Being acutely excruciatingly sensitive, William bears considerable discomfort to travel and speak about autism. Observing disconnected people and how they treat each other is very difficult to the point where he looses sleep... he is not alone in this but most of us have a filter. There is a section in his book devoted to this progressive disregard, "I think people emulate what they see, and that impacts people's behavior and conduct." A media fixated society of the haves and have not's and the 'Messiah complex' it's all me, me, me. What makes it all worth it for him is at each talk at least one person reverses their view on autism. Is this worldwide phenomena an evolutionary process to get people back on track with their spiritual nature? Last fall he gave a talk to a group of minority parents, his main message "your children are beautiful!" The response was overwhelming, men sobbed, the guilt, shame, and stigma of having an autistic child runs deep, William's view gives them permission to see the beauty without feelings of disgrace. "This culture of fear perpetrated upon autism must be eradicated." Being in both worlds, William is indeed a remarkable bridge to hope and although difficult at times, he would never want to loose his sensitivity ...but think not that he is without humor, feeling rejuvenated by our conversation he says, "This is me on fire now!" because his reactions are 'quiet' he had to tell us he was not only rested but excited! Delightful! His simple, articulate, sincere, thinking uplifts us all.
Listen Now	March 5th, 2007 "The Ripple Effect" A listener's question about a 13 year old diagnosed with ADHD leads to advice that all parents should hear. A grandmother who presumed intellect, one of William's fundamental tenets, and the effect of this on the infant she was holding, hmmm, maybe this applies to everybody! The Autism exercise in his Jan 07 program... was the title too scary? "The View" and Rosie's blog; a new meaning to "symmetry"; the Lady Bug story; and the Ripple Effect.
Listen Now	January 16th, 2007 "Become 'Autistic' for Three Minutes" Have a quick taste of Autism right here with William's brilliant yet simple exercise! See for yourself why he says... presume intellect. We won't explain as this is an experience for you! This will WOW you and expand your view whether autism is in your reality or not. The response from those who tuned in to the live show was definitely 'Wow'! Send a digital picture of your results to Elena and we will post them for all to see, including your hosts' results! Include your name and city if you wish. The documentary "Autism is a World", its controversy; facilitated communication; examples of our autism in everyday life; and William's breakthrough that no one wants to hear. "Creating authentic change means doing the right thing." He is truly in both worlds and from this perspective what he presents to parents, special educators, and therapists is outstanding. "We are not talking about education, we are talking about survival." To help us surrender our ignorance William does environmental assessments to bring compassion into their space, and travels extensively giving presentations, workshops, and private consultations with care givers. He is redefining how we communicate not only with autism but with everyone in our lives.
Listen Now	November 14th, 2006 "Let's Not Eradicate, Let's Celebrate!" There is much misdiagnosing, where autism is blamed for behavior actually stemming from other mental health reasons ...his book uncovers uncharted territories with multiple layers to explore. The results from his one day workshops on this topic, William calls it a new psychiatric paradigm, are life changing. People acutely sensitive are terribly susceptible to outside influences, unlike neuro-typical or "normal" people, whose fear and disdain regarding autistics even manifests in church! "We compartmentalize what we don't understand. ...and we value physical beauty, but at what price?" William demystifies this for us in his first book where he bears his soul. Also... the naivety of innocence, no fear, not running away... but towards something... water, which to autistics is extremely important, the closest earthly thing to the fluidity of being in spirit again. A disorder to be cured? "I'm not broken, don't fix me!"
Listen Now	October 2nd, 2006 "Presume Intellect" William's mantra and prominent in his book, "Autism and the God Connection." In childhood he experienced abuse for being different, as well as other occurrences, thoughts, he could not explain. When later he discovered that he had a mild form of autism, it led him to finding countless stories of the same gifted propensities and psychic experiences. Autism has been pathologized to the point that many parents regard it as a death sentence and some even perceive their child being at the level of a dog. Yet many more consider their autistic child a gift, and Bill is passionate about their ability to teach us much, if we just release thinking of autism as an 'affliction.' ...then we find out about his other passion, "The Wizard of Oz" and its mystical themes.