Hi, My name is Alison, I'm 46, divorced with a 14 year old son, Ryan, who is a high functioning Aspergers sufferer and I live in Swansea. My interest in NLP was tweaked by some rather silly teachers who told me that Ry should ''forget his GCSE's and concentrate on vocational qualifications such as catering'' Needless to say I was upset, however that throw away remark led me to look at ways to help my son which in turn has lead me to NLP. I've read a few books and I have a 1-2-1 on Tuesday with Jenny, an NLP trainer who I hope will give me some much needed advice on bulding rapport with Ry. I don't know if NLP will help my son but I know reading the books has given me clarity and a small amount of understanding on the complexities of human nature. I'd like to go further and enlist on a traing course so if anyone can recommend one i'd be more than greatful. I'd love to hear from you all especially any one in my situation. Take care Ali.

Catering? Asperger's people are often genius-level in the careers they are drawn to. While your son may or may not excel in a traditional educational setting, encouraging him to fully explore the subjects that he is naturally interested in will likely lead him to exciting results.

NLP is particularly useful for Asperger's folks in that they can use it to learn to consciously follow and respond to the kinds of non-verbal cues that the rest of us follow and respond to on an unconscious level. I know several adults diagnosed with Asperger's who have benefited in that way.

Another practice that seems beneficial for such people is Aikido, which similarly teaches how to follow, match and respond to non-verbal cues.

I believe it is hard to be in a position to realistically 'compare' & hence recommend specific providers of NLP. My pre-training research led me to what I thought a rather pure form of NLP...John Seymour Associates who operate in London & Bristol. Details are on their website & it might be worth talking to them. John himself does large chunks of the lecturing & coaching & he seems passionate & totally immersed in NLP rather than solely income. There's a 2-day introductory course & then the optional 3x3 2-day Practitioner modules spread out to suit. There are assessments & loads of practice with coaching assistants to help in small group work (I.e 2-5 depending upon the exercise). The modular approach for me gives the opportunity to try learnings in the real world & then feedback/clarify on the next module.
Hope this helps - feel free to ask me if I can help further.
Best wishes
Barry