Is anyone else here autistic ?

[Progressivism]

I saw someone here with an Autistic Pride signature, and as someone with High Functioning Autism myself,I wonder who else here is autistic.I personally did not know I was autistic until a year ago, when I was thirteen.I took the news not with weight,but with wonder at how I mentally developed during childhood not knowing that I was truly different from other children.I sometimes wish I was never told I had autism though,does anyone else feel this way ?

[The Midway Rebel]

1. Person first, disorder second...please!

No one here is autistic! Though, I know there are people here who have autism spectrum disorders. Even though some refer to themselves as "autistic", I prefer to think that you are a person, not a disorder.

Welcome to DU!

:D

[Odin2005]

11. I prefer to be called an Autistic Person, thank you very much.

"person with Autism" implies that my autism is something apart from be to be fixed, not part of who I am.

[Deep13]

12. Grammatically, the adjective comes before the noun. nt

[seabeyond]

2. my son is working on 15. he has always known he was different. and he is good with it

i have not had him tested and wont. we simply call it a fuzzy brain. intellectually he is way above. but i had to talk to teachers at beginning fo school years to give them heads up. he has things he recognizes about self, and tools to deal with his differences.

it is a lifetime thing. over the years i have done less and given him more responsibilities in recognizing and taking care of the issues.

he has never been allowed to use as an excuse, to do less or not do. all people have cross to bare

[elleng]

3. You may find some informed DUers here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=387

[Skittles]

4. may I ask you something please

you must be considered a kind of high-functioning autistic, yes? I have an autistic brother - he's like Rain Man - certainly he would never get on a board like this and talk to people. I'm wondering if you know about degrees of autism; thanks.

[SKKY]

5. There are a few with Asperger's that post on DU...

[mzteris]

6. a FEW?

:rofl:

(said with much love)

[KamaAina]

7. Not only that, I used to live in NYC

and am still in contact with various and sundry other people on the spectrum up there! :hi:

[tekisui]

8. Odin2005 had the Autistic Pride sig line.

I don't know anything about the poster, though.

[lightningandsnow]

9. I'm not autistic, but I have non-verbal learning disorder...

it's an LD somewhat similar to Asperger's. http://the-callahans.com/susete/faq_nvld.htm

:hi:

[Odin2005]

14. I consider NVLD part of the spectrum.

:hi:

[KamaAina]

15. Cross-border culture shock?

years ago, I worked with Byron Rourke from the University of Windsor. Dr. Rourke used NLD as a synonym for Asperger's, much as Canadians use "developmentally disabled" instead of "mentally retarded" (many self-advocates see the latter as an offensive slur along the lines of the N-word).

[lightningandsnow]

16. Nope!

Apparently, NLD is a much better diagnostic fit for me than asperger's, since I don't have the same social issues that autistic people have, and can make eye contact and demonstrate "theory of mind". However, my nonverbal IQ is 40-50 points lower than my verbal IQ, and I have significant problems with visual memory, hand-eye coordination, executive functioning, and processing speed.

I just have a weird brain.

[KamaAina]

17. "Theory of mind" was debunked years ago.

After Simon Baron-Cohen's (yes, Sacha's cousin!) splashy "Sallie-Anne" experiment, other researchers stepped in and found that older children with autism (around age 10; Baron-Cohen worked with 7-year-olds) could perform the "theory of mind" task. Thus, the ability is delayed, not absent.

edit: 40-50 points?! :wow: You'd make a fascinating case study indeed!

[lightningandsnow]

18. Yeah, my psychologist said it was one of the biggest IQ gaps she's ever seen.

My nonverbal IQ is technically in the average range, but I still have an NLD diagnosis because of my problems in other areas.

I often jokingly curse the fact that I could have been a member of almost any high IQ society if my nonverbal IQ was anywhere near my verbal IQ! Instead, I am excellent at some things, useless at others, with almost no middle ground. Ha!

[Odin2005]

19. Yep, IMO the "theory of minds" thing is bogus.

And IMO the BS about "empathy deficits" are BS to, empathy is not the same thing as reading non-verbal communication.

[LynzM]

21. Hi Odin!

:hi:

I'm an "NT" woman married to an AS guy... just to preface.

I'm curious that you think that the empathy deficit is B.S. I've certainly seen plenty of instances where my husband doesn't exhibit the kind of empathy/sympathy I would expect in a situation. If that's not part of AS, is he just a jerk? ;) (I'm just teasing, but the premise of the question is serious.)

[Odin2005]

22. Emapthy requires an understanding of the mental states of others, no matter the source of the...

...information. NTs rely on unconscious perception of body language for that information, something we are poor at, We on the spectrum have to get the information by other means. So if it seems that he is not empathetic it may be because he is simply not getting the data necessary to trigger the appropriate emotional reaction. I may have trouble for example telling by your body language (unless it is blatantly obvious), that you are upset, but if you tell me you are upset then I will have the perfectly normal reaction.

[LynzM]

23. Hrm.

Ok, I can see what you're saying. The issue that I run into is that even with the appropriate information, the "trigger appropriate emotional reaction" doesn't necessarily seem to happen. We have talked about what I need in response to being upset (and how to tell by body language when I am upset), and he has learned how to do some of these things, but they're definitely not instinctive emotional responses on his part. Likewise, he seems to perceive/care little for the emotional affects of his actions on others, not maliciously, but it happens.

Perhaps this is one of these "if you've met one person with AS, you've met *one person* with AS" things, where the issue that comes across as 'lack of empathy' is actually caused by different things depending on the person?

[Odin2005]

24. Yes, every autistic person is different.

I think this is a personality difference. Jungian personality systems distinguish between "thinkers" and "feelers", I as an INFJ personality type am a feeler, your husband is almost certainly a thinker type. The stereotypical Aspie is a Thinker, but there are plenty of us that are Feelers. Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein is thought to have had AS and he was an INFJ like me.

[Odin2005]

20. 40-point difference?

Holy Cow! :wow:

[Odin2005]

10. Hi!

Was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome when I was 15. :hi:

[Deep13]

13. Either Asperger's or something like it.

I never knew the term until a few years ago, but I knew something wasn't right.

[Deep13]

25. I get pissed off when buildings are renamed. nt