On the Spectrum Bill Wong: An Occupational Therapist with a Heart

By Debra Hosseini

Bill Wong, raised in Hong Kong, didn’t speak until he was almost three. He had restricted and repetitive behavior. His pediatrician refused to diagnosed him with autism because of his high IQ.

Bill was an introverted child who attended an all-boys’ elementary school. He had no friends and never played with the other students. He was teased by his classmates because he had no talent for arts and crafts. This made him shut down and withdraw more into himself.

Despite his challenges, Bill was mainstreamed in a regular education class. He came to Monterey Park, California, in the sixth grade and was placed in English Learning Development program for the next three years. By high school, he was in regular education classes with typical students.

Bill feels that he constantly struggles with social skills. He was shy around girls, especially attractive ones. The segregation of boys and girls in Hong Kong in elementary school made him socially awkward. He had trouble adjusting to the more liberal United States culture in the sixth grade.

Math was Bill’s best subject. He competed in the open qualifier for the International Math Olympiad in 5th grade and won a 1st place trophy for Math in his middle school in 7th grade.

In 2007, he graduated with a degree in Statistics from UC Riverside. He couldn’t find a job in his major. The next year he decided to become an Occupational Therapist. His parents convinced me to do this because they felt it to be a field with low unemployment rate and a decent salary.

Bill loves to help people and explored religious service in the seminary.at the Church Divinity School Of The Pacific in Berkely, California. The job prospects weren’t good.

In the summer of 2010, Bill was finally diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome.

In 2011, he completed a Master’s degree in Occupational Therapy and in 2013 received his clinical doctorate. He completed his internships at a mental health hospital, school district, and hand therapy clinic.

His first job as an Occupational Therapist was in a Pediatrics OT Clinic in Arcadia, California. Now he’s self-employed with Autism Unites, as well as Go2Care, Inc.

Go2Care, Inc. is a state of the art telehealth occupational therapy service companies.Those of you not in the Los Angeles area can receive Occupational Services from Bill through a unique this unique Telehealth system.

This is a virtual confidential session with Bill over Skype or via phone that focuses on lifestyle changes. Bill addresses such issues as social skills, transitioning to college/work, dating, and stress/anxiety management.

The system has many advantages. One of the most benefical is an autistic person doesn’t need to drive their car.

I know many autistic people feel more comfortable receiving therapy from a person who is on the spectrum themselves.

The overall objective is for occupational therapy clients who need occupational therapy services across the United States. If Bill isn’t licensed in your state, the company will take care of the paperwork so you can receive O.T. sessions from Bill.

For more information you can email Bill at billw1628@gmail.com.

Bill will be speaking in April at the American Occupational Therapy Association Annual conference in Baltimore. Bill is dedicating his presentation at that conference to his O.T. mentor Terry Olivas-De La O. He’ll also be at Autismhwy.com Chalk Festival in Covina April 12. I look forward to seeing Bill there.