Everything you think you know about autism is wrong

[pendell]

So contends a sufferer (http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2012/12/10/everything-you-think-you-know-about-autism-is-wrong/?singlepage=true). Very cool article. I suspect very cool book. I appreciate his struggles with the school system, which I also had although not to the same degree.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[The Succubus]

Oh wow. Although I don't work with autistic kids too often, this article was a real eye opener. Thank you for linking it - there might be some doctors at work who'd be interested in reading this too.

[Castaras]

Interesting. As someone with Aspergers rather than full blown Autism (to the extent he has - his seems remarkably "severe"), this was intriguing to see how someone further down the spectrum than I does things. There were a few things I noticed mentioned that I was nodding and sympathising with - the increased sensitivity to hearing was the main one.

[Asta Kask]

Interesting. I would caution that autism is a heterogenous disorder and what worked for him may not work for all autistic kids. And that just because he lacks a particular symptom doesn't mean no autistic kids lack it. Over-generalising from him may be as bad as generalising from some other source.

[Traab]

I was actually thinking exactly that Asta. Arent there dozens upon dozens of forms or levels of autism each with its own set of symptoms and such? This is most certainly handy as information for docs in the future to consider when treating a child like this, but its just a bit of extra info to add to the massive pile.

Also, I may have missed something. I know he cant really talk, and that his body isnt always under his control, so how was he able to basically speed type what he wants to say accurately if his body wont even do something as broad as hand the salt to the person on his right instead of his left reliably? It seems to me that writing up a story would be a lot harder than that.

[Talanic]

I would guess that part of it is that when he's focused on writing, he's not receptive to the distractions that throw him off when he's trying to do other things.

[Sparkify]

This didn't change anything about what I thought about autism or the people that suffer from it =_=

[scurv]

Why do people always says suffer, when they refer to mental condition's? It implies a state that is to be pitied. When I read what was presented in that link, That is not someone I pity, He has a view of the world that Most of us will never have, And yes he has his share of issues But from what I read he handles them in such a way that it invokes respect from me.

[Closet_Skeleton]

Why do people always says suffer, when they refer to mental condition's? It implies a state that is to be pitied.

Suffering is something you feel, it doesn't matter if anyone pities you.

If you met a couple who were dealing with losing one of their children but were still able to work and look after their surviving children, would you say "these people aren't suffering because I don't pity them but admire their ability to get on with their lives"?

[scurv]

I talk as someone who has lived with and been around so called emotional/mental problem for most of my life.
And dealing with ones own mental framework that they perceive the world with is a far cry different then dealing with the loss of a child.

One is about having mental facility that are not aligned with what society considers normal is in very few ways comparable to parents losing their child. How one can compare the two is beyond my ability to understand.

But you do make my point, Suffering is what you feel. Each Us We All have our challenges, So why assign the trait of suffering to someone who faces there challenges just because they have them?

[Squark]

I think I see what you're saying. "Suffering" has an inherently negative connotation; but Asperger's/Autism/etc. don't have to be negative experiences. Yes, it's certainly challenging, and coming to terms with things can be a very painful experience. But somehow "suffering" has connotations that it would be better if the thing causing the suffering could be eliminated- But there are people with conditions (Ungh. More negative connotations. But I can't think of a better word offhand) that cause them to see the world differently who genuinely embrace their unique position in the world, and the word "Suffering" doesn't convey that.

[noparlpf]

So contends a sufferer (http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2012/12/10/everything-you-think-you-know-about-autism-is-wrong/?singlepage=true). Very cool article. I suspect very cool book. I appreciate his struggles with the school system, which I also had although not to the same degree.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

Interesting.

Speaking of which, I just saw this (http://www.autismspeaks.org/science/science-news/researchers-link-new-autism-gene-serotonin-production) a couple of days ago. Recent theory about some gene they think might be related.


Interesting. As someone with Aspergers rather than full blown Autism (to the extent he has - his seems remarkably "severe"), this was intriguing to see how someone further down the spectrum than I does things. There were a few things I noticed mentioned that I was nodding and sympathising with - the increased sensitivity to hearing was the main one.

I read something somewhere (and promptly lost it never to be found again; this was before I made a habit of bookmarking every article I find interesting) about Asperger's vs. autism. These guys were focussing on the brain via fMRI and MRI, and found that in people with autism, the amygdala is overdeveloped, and in people with Asperger's, it's underdeveloped. And the amygdala is supposed to be involved in emotional memory and in the stress response. So in people with Asperger's where it's underdeveloped emotional learning might be delayed or impaired somewhat. And in people with autism where it's overdeveloped, the brain might have an overdeveloped stress response, which could be why normal levels of sensory stimulation are overwhelming. And of course the brain is really complicated and there are going to be lots of variations among the two.
Anyway, what I meant to say was, neurologically there are some differences, symptomatically there are some differences, so it's entirely possible that lumping the two together (like the DSMV is doing more so than before) is only looking at them very shallowly and missing the finer details.

[Silkspinner]

After nearly thirty years discovered my Dad has Asperger's. All my life I've wondered 'what the hell is wrong with this man?'

Problem was, his response was the same 'what is wrong with everyone else?'

Unlike what autism may be, I've seen absolutely no benefits, no 'seeing the world in a different way' from him. He does 'suffer' because he doesn't seem to 'get' many every day things. Having lived all my life with it I can see what he is thinking from his angle an it's not different. It's simply wrong. Skewed. Lacking in a fundamental understanding.

Also, I thought for many years that he had great patience and self control and I tried to model myself after it. Realized later it was none of those things, he just wasn't emotionally registering to react. If you've ever watched Star Trek: NG it was very much like living with Data.

It was thus completely bad luck that he met my mother, who has a personality disorder that he is incapable of seeing. It was only once I got out of the hell of having two mentally misdirected people that I realized how clear the world actually is. It was like being forced to wear a pair of prescription glasses. It warped a perfectly functional set of eyes and taking them off was like 'whoa, everything makes sense'. It's my parents who were not.