Kathy and her husband left everything to help their son find a life and career after an Asperger’s diagnosis, he climbed up from rock bottom and is thriving.
Josh Crickmay was deeply depressed in 2012. At just 15, he felt alone and misunderstood. Josh dropped out of school and even contemplated suicide.
“What followed was a deep and debilitating depression kindled by the belief that he would never be able to fend for himself. Severely suicidal, Josh landed in the hospital and was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome or High Functioning Autism.”
Josh’s parents decided to be proactive with the diagnosis and find a solution for his anguish. They decided to quit their jobs and take Josh on an adventure to pursue his passion and hopefully find a career that could carry him through without a formal qualification. The adventure was catered to Josh’s love of birding and photography and the hope was that it would give him a reason to live.
“For an entire year, they travelled to every corner of Southern Africa and spent seven weeks in the Amazon and Andes in what is known in birding circles as a “Big Year” which involves identifying as many bird species as possible in a single year, inspired by the movie of the same name.”
Josh managed to photograph 1000 different bird species. He then designed and formatted them all into a self-published coffee table book.
“The entire project represents Josh’s own work from photography to layout and design. His writing is a delight, honest, self-effacing and laugh-out-loud funny in places but sobering and tear-filled in others.” – Kathy Crickmay
The book has been a delight to those who have had the opportunity to read through it. The next step in the journey for Josh will be to create a channel where he will share vlogs about his journey.
“This book has a transformative effect; like turning on a flashlight in a dark room. For readers, the book serves as a delight for the senses – visually, thanks to the diverse and brilliant photography, and emotionally, through the way in which the book navigates Josh’s emotional journey” -Ernie and Liesl Els
This sentiment is shared by founding art director of Getaway magazine James Berrange who said, “the effect this book is going to have, can hardly be imagined”.
The book took nearly 3 years to write, with the first edition completed when he was just 16. They hope that the book will create an impact and give encouragement to a world where 1 in 68 people are thought to be on the Autism spectrum. Josh’s plan is that Josh’s Big Year will be the first in a series of books as he video blogs his adventures and highlights conservation issues.
You can find out more on Josh’s website here.
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