Psychotherapy of Asperger syndrome in adults

There is an increase in awareness in professionals that the Asperger syndrome (AS) in adulthood is associated with specific problems and burdens which may well differ from those in childhood and adolescence. The core symptoms of AS generally persist into adulthood, however in contrast to childhood and adolescence there is no specific support system for adults in Germany. Also the environment of the afflicted patient changes thus producing different challenges and problems. In addition a subgroup of patients with high functioning AS primarily presents in adulthood generally due to secondary psychosocial problems, depression or anxiety. Difficulties in social interaction, problems with modified daily routines and unforeseen situations cause severe frustration for the majority of the patients. While several therapy programs have been developed and implemented for children and adolescents, for adults there are none. Also there is a lack of comprehensive concepts addressing the specific needs of adult patients with AS. From an economic perspective this is particularly unfortunate since affected people often have good or excellent partial abilities and might be very valuable employees. In this article existing therapeutic concepts for AS are summarized and a newly designed group therapy program for adult patients with Asperger syndrome in Freiburg is introduced (Freiburg Asperger-spezifische Therapie fur Erwachsene, FASTER) which specifically addresses the needs and problems of adult patients with AS.