Pokemon Go

A week ago, I found my 12-year-old son researching about suicide. For the past year, he has been in the grip of depression. I use the word “grip” intentionally. I think of this disease like a giant fist that has my child in its clutches, squeezing the desire to live out of him. Occasionally, due [...]

My 18-year-old son did something sneaky with my phone as he was leaving for college. He put the Pokémon Go app on it. At first, I was none too pleased. I never cared for the TV show or the card game, so why would I want it on my phone? “To distract you from pain [...]

When Pokemon Go first came out, I could not for the life of me understand the hype. My brother (we’ll call him Alan) downloaded it as soon as it showed up in the App Store and was out Pokemon hunting with friends that night. I, on the other hand, stayed away from it. I had [...]

For the past two weeks, Pokemon Go has been taking over news channels, Facebook feeds and Twitter timelines all over the world. It’s a simple concept, allowing users to become trainers and live out their dreams of being “the best there ever was” by walking around their communities to catch the best and coolest Pokemon. As [...]

We have gone to the same beach house rental every summer for the past six years. Every year, my now 10-year-old son Jack who has autism and anxiety hates to leave the house. He gets anxious when we do new things or go to places he hasn’t been. He could barely tolerate the beach. It [...]

I’ve never been a fan of Pokemon. I had one card when I was in elementary school (And for those who are wondering, it was only Diglett, which was given to me as a throwaway card.) I have always felt it was a bit weird and confusing. And to some extent, it still is a bit confusing [...]

One of the biggest struggles I deal with when it comes to my mentees who have autism and other special needs tends to be focused on video game “obsessions.” This often means staying indoors for long periods of time without getting much exercise, time outside, or chances for socialization with peers. When I give talks at schools and to parents about [...]

Pokemon Go is a new game that came out this past week and has already become a sensation with 15 million downloads already. The game encourages players to get out, get up, and get moving. The more a player walks around, the more gear they get, Pokemon they catch, the faster they level up, and [...]