I had a comment from a reader who described his or her dad as emotionally distant. I have some advice for that situation.
First of all, people with Asperger's traits DO have emotions - sometimes very intense emotions. The hard part for us is to figure a way to express these emotions appropriately - or express them at all!
We know we feel bad or sad or embarrassed, but we have no idea what to do with these emotions to help improve the situation.
I like to think of various feelings/emotions as flavors, because flavors are neither "good" nor "bad," but simply present to our taste buds, as feelings are to our hearts and minds.
For the "emotionally distant" person, I recommend making the following chart and filling it in:
BLAND - boredom, usefulness, sameness
SOUR - frustration, difficult challenges, nervousness, annoyance
BITTER - embarrassment, anger, fearfulness, offended/insulted, disappointment, resentment
SALTY - excitement, learning, fun challenges, good changes
SWEET - happiness, enjoyment, fulfilled wishes
To fill in the chart, please describe various situations in which the feelings could be described by one or more of these flavors. Then friends and family will better be able to help and understand the problem. Homeschoolers, try combining this activity with a science lesson about the taste buds!
"BUT I HAVE TRUSTED IN THY MERCY; MY HEART SHALL REJOICE IN THY SALVATION. I WILL SING UNTO THE LORD, BECAUSE HE HATH DEALT BOUNTIFULLY WITH ME."