Pretend play and Asperger's

I often hear it said that children/people with Asperger's don't play 'pretend', like other children do. However, when I was a child I was always 'pretending', one way or the other. For example, I would get inside a plastic laundry tub and pretend that it was a barge-boat, and the undulations in the carpet were waves. My brother and I would take it in turns to push the 'barge-boat' round the sitting-room, and we would get out of the barge at various seats, which became landing posts.

I also played teddy-bear (and doll) tea-parties, again with my brother, or made my dolls talk about their day at school.

I am diagnosed with Aspergers, and have most of the traits, but I did 'pretend' play as a kid. It was just that I rarely played in the typical way with other children, and the children I did play with were usually younger than me. Also, I had to be in control of any game I played. I only had one friend at primary school, and we often fell out with one another, usually whenever she tried to include other children.

Parents
  • Well put, Longman.

    I struggled massively with group interactions, and still do, but I could play with one other child, so long as the play was on my terms. Most of the time, however, I played alone. I never went on sleep-overs because I was never invited, but rarely, this one girl in my class came over for tea. It helped that her mum was friends with my mum and that her younger  brother was in my brother's class. I did play 'pretend' with her, but could not have done so if other kids got involved.

Reply
  • Well put, Longman.

    I struggled massively with group interactions, and still do, but I could play with one other child, so long as the play was on my terms. Most of the time, however, I played alone. I never went on sleep-overs because I was never invited, but rarely, this one girl in my class came over for tea. It helped that her mum was friends with my mum and that her younger  brother was in my brother's class. I did play 'pretend' with her, but could not have done so if other kids got involved.

Children
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