Filling in the Gaps: Helping Adults with Autism

Autism. It’s a word that many hear these days. When the word is spoken, images of children with behavioral issues often come to mind.

But what many people don’t know is that it’s a condition that lasts a lifetime. And many adults still need help with managing their condition. Fortunately, there are numerous individuals and groups out there dedicated to helping adults with autism in a variety of ways. One such group is called Spectrum Autism. Based out of Gwinnett County, Georgia, this group offers a variety of services for autistic adults.

Spectrum Autism was founded in 1998 when a woman named Claire Dees, who has an autistic son, realized there was a pressing need in the community to help autistic adults.

“Spectrum was started by myself and another mom when my son was 10 years old and we co-lead the group starting in 1998. When we had over 100 people show up for the first support group meeting, I realized there was a great need for support in our community. My co-founder moved on to doing other things within a couple of years and I kept the group going and did it as a volunteer for 19 years and then became the paid executive director at that time and I’ve been doing it now for eight years full-time. Helping improve the lives of those with autism and their family members became my passion and my purpose.”

Since then, the organization has served countless autistic individuals in the Metro Atlanta area. They host a variety of activities in various locations to help adults with autism make friends, come to grips with their condition, and in some cases, find love.

“We have developed camp programs both day, camp and overnight camps respite programs. We do an event called Table Talk for adults on the spectrum and for teens, helping them make friends and build relationships using a speed dating to make a friend model. This event was captured on the Netflix series Love on the Spectrum last season and has created quite a buzz for this program with waitlist every single month. We also do social clubs and host a teen social club and adult social club and a homeschool group social club on a weekly basis. One of the most popular things we do is create family events on a regular basis so families can attend a judgment free They are fun free events like a fishing day, egg hunt, Pool party holiday party and more.” Dees said.

The purpose of these events is to assist individuals with autism in forming bonds with each other. Individuals diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder differ in how their condition affects them. However, there are similarities between them all. One such similarity is that people on the spectrum tend to have difficulties with communication. Organizations like Spectrum Autism seek to help people on the spectrum overcome this and make friends.

Spectrum Autism has been serving the community for over two decades, and will continue to do so in the future.

“We hope to continue to fill in the gaps and supports and services in our community and the next one on the horizon is an after school program.” Dees said.

Organizations such as Spectrum Autism have been on the rise in recent years, as have the number of reported cases of autism. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 36 children will be diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The exact causes of autism are mostly unknown, and continue to be researched and speculated about.

To learn more or to donate, please visit https://spectrumautism.org/