Issue date: 4/23/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Xavier Mascareñas / Daily Lobo Junior Aaron Anderson prepares for a Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society event at the SUB on Tuesday. Anderson was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome when he was 5 years old.

Student Aaron Anderson was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism, when he was 5.

"I suppose there was always the underlying sense that there seems to be something fundamentally different in me," Anderson said. "I always felt somewhat different from my peers."

Nicole Hudson, academic student success manager of Accessibility Services, said students with Asperger's tend to have above-average cognitive and verbal abilities but have impaired social skills.

"When they're socializing, they can't carry a conversation because they can't figure when to interject something or understand jokes," she said. "They often become loners and isolate themselves."

Hudson has worked with Anderson since he arrived at UNM three years ago. She said students have always been kind to Anderson.

"Definitely, throughout my time so far at the University here, pretty much every person I've come to be acquainted with has had that welcoming attitude and inclination towards unconditional help," he said.

Monica Sandoval, events director of Community Experience, said she has worked with Anderson for three years.

"He's very kind-hearted and giving," Sandoval said. "He's always here when we need him."

Sandoval said Anderson is head volunteer of Community Experience and is responsible for organizing events and rallying other volunteers.

Anderson said living with Asperger's has not always been so easy. Middle school was the peak of his anti-social stage, he said.

"I sort of degenerated into a very defensive attitude," he said. "I had the biggest chip on my shoulder that anyone had ever seen."

Anderson said he tried to change his social behavior to meet the expectations of others.

Hudson said people who have Asperger's can be trained to act appropriately in social situations. Asperger's syndrome is a neuro-biological disorder, which means the brain does not entirely comprehend the situation, she said.

"People with Asperger's are very literal in their thought," Hudson said. "Basically, their brain just does not make that connection or pick up on the social cues. They can't read feelings or facial expressions and have trouble with idioms and slang."

Continued...

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