Do you consider autism a disability?

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No, we just need a society in which "social competence" matters LESS than it does now, and our abilities matter more.

We need a society in which the specific KINDS of "social skills" that matter most are ones we can learn relatively easily, rather than (as is currently the case in too many work environments) the kinds that are intrinsically hardest for many of us.

For example, I think many of us, without too much difficulty, can learn the purely verbal aspects of assertiveness and active listening. On the other hand, the difficulties many of us have with eye contact and body language would cease to be a problem in a work environment where it was understood and accepted that different people have different body language and that people shouldn't jump to conclusions about the meaning of another person's body language without first getting to know the person very well.

I'm on the high-functioning end of the spectrum and don't need government support in order to live an independent life, but I do feel as if autism is holding me back in my life. Maybe I'm in that post-diagnosis depression, but I'm having a hard time seeing the autism is awesome mentality some seem to have.

Autism can be "awesome" only in an autistic-friendly social context. In such a context, here are some aspects of autism that are, or can be, "awesome":

1) A tendency to be honest and forthright. We not only tend to be unusually honest and forthright ourselves, but we need other people to be honest and forthright with us.

2) If you happen to have special interests, a joy in learning that most other people don't seem to experience.

3) Various abilities that some (though not all) autistic people have, and that are more likely to be found among autistic people than among NT's.

Googling "good side of autism" brings up a bunch of results including this page and this page. (Of course, not every autistic person has the traits mentioned on these pages.)

As I said, though, to reap the benefits of whatever positive traits we may have, we need an autistic-friendly social context -- which the autism community needs to do a lot more work on building.

It's still up in the air as to whether I'm on the spectrum. Having said that: I've never worked. I have no friends. If it wasn't for the support I'm getting it's quite likely I'd end up in a group home. I'm quite articulate ,but apart from being ok at managing my finances my practical ability is poor. I would say I have a disability.

I guess its only a disability if someone lets it be one but then again depending on one's functioning ability it can be quiet difficult. I know people who have fairly ok functioning lvls but their parents make functionality difficult for them due to varying fears and anxieties including my own parents who are like this.

Compulsive honesty tends to cause problems more than it is actually beneficial. Example, I just came back from a week long vacation during which one day I went for a walk along a beach I had never been to before with my grandmother. My grandmother asked me what I thought of the beach to which I responded honestly: "I found the beach to be neither remarkable nor unremarkable." Which is to say it was a fairly average beach. My grandmother became quite upset which it took me 20 minutes to parse out that what she had been asking was not what I thought of the beach, but whether I enjoyed our walk that day. Had I been more socially adept I may have answered dishonestly that "I thought it was a lovely beach" and avoided upsetting my grandmother.



The flip side is that you have interests that no one in the real world outside the internet cares about.



I'm aware there are positive aspects of autism, but to me at least the deficits (anxiety, executive functioning difficulties, social difficulties) outweigh the positives. Also asking the NT world to bend to autistics is an impossible task. It's like asking all people who can walk to roll around in wheelchairs instead.

I'm pretty bitter and angry right now for reasons having to do with my life, so that may be coloring my perspective here.

I don't really know how I view it. I remember my parents told me that I had autism and they explained that it didn't make me disabled. They told me that it made certain things hard for me. They told me that it didn't make me "special needs". They used to get annoyed with my younger sister for saying I was "special needs". I sort of felt confused the whole time they were explaining it

A major difference is that, if there were no more people in wheelchairs, it wouldn't negatively affect the world. I think the loss of autustic people would be a disaster for humanity.

Agreed. I'm also HFA and I'm mainly on govt assistance because the city and hopefully soon SSA don't think I can hold down a job. But if you can work more power to you.

Yes because if it weren't, then you wouldn't be autistic.

It is a social disability.
And most of us have: Executive functioning disorder.
This makes life quite frustrating/tedious at times.

But there are a lot of benefits too.

Yes, but what Ive realized in this case is that with deficit there is other strength.

Using a somewhat different perspective, Ray Charles was blind but his senses were heightened.

The thing that is near physical disability is various common issues, gut, back, anorexia and comorbids.

The thing that is physical is (for me) balance issues, reflexes and slow wits.

But during my childhood, willpower, channeling anger for the positive or simply lack of socializing has given me more of an 3rd person view of others and sometimes, even myself, without as much bias as possible.

All these for me can and has changed, reaching out, getting a second opinion, taking risks and making plans.

Working out and eating healthy can help from the ground up, especially if you get stuck in your own head.

Like I said, second opinion and I suppose adding your own voice, but its choosing the right time to speak, coherently and not too formal, fitting more like.

Yes and i don't think being disabled is the end of the world.

End of the world no, frustrating yes.

It really is quite frustrating.....

I'm not sure why you have to bring your personal sex life into this discussion.