Body Mass Insanity
Do you know what your Body Mass Index is? My BMI is 20 and my daughter Sarah’s is 27. To most of us, these numbers have little—if any—meaning. However, for many physicians, the Body Mass Index is both bible and golden yardstick when it comes to determining...
read moreGraduation Gauntlet
What could be more special than watching your child’s college graduation? Answer: Watching your child graduate from the same school where you received your diploma 35 years earlier. Max’s May 26th graduation from “our” alma mater was the ultimate déjà...
read moreBlog Blow Back
Counting down the days to Max’s graduation, our phone conversations cover a lot of territory: slogging through the last college paper, enjoying senior week festivities, saying goodbye to friends and my son’s erratic job search. On our last phone call, Max...
read moreSarah’s Fifteen Minutes
Last May, Sarah was “discovered” by a Columbia University film director. Director Rachel Israel was looking for someone to play opposite a young man with Asperger’s and Tourette’s Syndrome in her thesis film. She had already auditioned 100 neurotypical...
read moreEmpathy and Etiquette
Hmm… This one is complicated. One of my readers who never had children asked me about teaching kids manners, and whether I thought it was also possible to teach empathy. The first part of the question is easy. Most parents try to teach their kids to say...
read moreNot Exactly An Accident
We’re about to eat brunch when my son calls from college. I put my blackberry on speaker phone as our eggs and French toast arrive. The diner is noisy, but our ears are on full alert because Max is usually asleep at noon on Sundays. “You’ll...
read moreCatch Them If You Can
Bravo to The New York Times for exposing Cheon Park (on the front page of last Friday’s paper), a contractor that was supposed to provide services for developmentally delayed 3 and 4-year olds. There are countless criminals to be pursued, but someone who preys...
read moreProphylactic Cleaning Frenzy
What’s driving Henry and me to madly clean the apartment? At first I thought it was because I invited a few friends over. I was reciprocating their invitations and noticed how much cleaner and less cluttered their apartments were. I ran to Bed Bath & Beyond...
read moreAutism Unawareness
Despite the fact that April is National Autism Awareness month, it seems to me that most of the world lives in a state of profound unawareness. The Center for Disease Control recently announced that 1 in 50 babies will now be diagnosed on the autistic...
read moreThe Boy Who Cried Everything
There's no getting around it--my son is a hypochondriac. At the ripe old age of 22, Max imagines himself suffering from a variety of ailments. When his leg tingles, it's multiple sclerosis. If his hand trembles, Parkinson's. Any rash or pimple in the pubic...
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About Marguerite
Marguerite Elisofon is a New York City writer and the author of My Picture Perfect Family, a memoir about how her family navigated life with a child on the autistic spectrum before the internet and support groups existed. She also blogs about parenting young adults and disability related issues in The Never Empty Nest. Her writing has been featured in a variety of publications, including Time and NY Metro Parents magazine, and her family’s story has been featured by the NY Post, Fox News, The Daily Mail, and on Jenny McCarthy’s Dirty Sexy Funny radio show. A Vassar graduate, Marguerite was born and raised in New York City, where she still lives with her husband, Howard, in their mostly-empty nest. She is available to speak about a wide variety of issues relating to twins, parenting, and autism. 