Is Aspergers Syndrome more disabling than Down Syndrome?

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I wonder whether Aspergers Syndrome is in fact over all more disabling than Down Syndrome in todays society?

Being socially disabled seems to be a huge handicap in todays society. Obviously people with Down Syndrome have their own substantial problems, but they seem to actually do much better socially, seem to be more liked, in part because their disability is visible, in part because they seem more happy in social settings (perhaps because they, due to their typical low IQ, do not fully realize their low position in the social NT hierarchy the way AS people do). They often seem to be quite happy.

Two questions:

1. Do you think Aspergers Syndrome is more disabling than Down Syndrome in todays society? Why/why not?

2. Would you rather have chosen to have Down Syndrome or Aspergers Syndrome if you had had the choice at birth? Why that choice?

I think it depends on the individual and how severe their case of autism or downs syndrome is.

Why would we want to discuss this? What does the "winner" get?

I would like to have this discussion but, well, because of what coffeebean said and is getting at I don't think it's feasible to talk about it publicly without coming off as a terrible person.

My lawyer advises me to avoid this thread...

The notion that people with Down's are 'happy' in general, is a surprisingly tenacious misconception. Especially among people with Down's who've passed the adolescent stage, depression and anger outbursts are a common phenomenon.

If you get something out of deciding once and for all that you or anyone else have it worse than other people who are a struggling minority, by all means. Maybe that feeling is trying to tell you that it's a cruel way to look at people who are in pain and what is causing those people pain, though.

1) I can't form an opinion. I've never had any in-depth conversations with adult Downies, only Aspies.

2) Autism... The devil I know.

In my opinion it depends upon the abilities of the individuals concerned.

I know a lady with Downs Syndrome who functions just like anyone else. The only "giveaway" is that she looks like a person with Downs Syndrome.

As for people with Aspergers & ASD I have discovered that they are almost as varied in behaviour & personality than anyone else. Some are EXTREMELY selfish, whereas others can feel empathy and express a need to care for others.

Everyone is different.
We each have a unique journey.

I think I probably am better off than both those groups of people in general, but just by saying this I could be offending every autistic on this site because I am not only making a value judgement about people but also stereotyping.

Although anyone with depression has it pretty badly. If I don't value my own life it doesn't matter the other abilities or disabilities I have, I will not be able to enjoy whatever I have.

I was thinking whether one "should" screen for AS the way one screens for Down Syndrome during pregnancy - if it was possible.

Is it so "wrong"/bad to have AS that we should have been spared from having been born? (similar to the way many people think of Down Syndrome)


Or is AS somehow less bad than Down Syndrome in the sense that one should not screen for AS if it was possible?

I do not agree completely with this.
In my old school there was a kid with Down's syndrome and they used to bully him (both the teachers and the students).
Also I heard on TV many cases that happened in the high schools of my city (but not in my school) about kids with Down's syndrome being beaten up by their classmates in the school bathroom and some of the assaults were even filmed and posted on Youtube.

About your two questions, I can't answer the first one and I don't think one can give a generally truthful answer because Down's syndrome just like autism is a spectrum and people can be severely, moderately or mildly affected by it, also they're two different kinds of disability and therefore it's hard to make a comparison (not to mention that there are persons who have both Down's syndrome and AS).
But I can answer your second question and I'd say Asperger's all the way.
People can't tell I have a disability just by looking at me and I think this is a good thing for me. They might have realized I had some kind of mental disorder when I was a child or pre-teen but I don't think that now they can immediately guess I am anything more than just a weird gal.
Also many people with Down's syndrome I've known had physical problems (like heart problems or eye problems) connect to their genetic anomaly and I am glad that I don't have those.

To be honest I think it's a little cruel to screen for any disorder unless it's something like Tay Sachs wherein the person will have a very short, painful life. Who are we to determine whether or not the life of a disabled person is worth living? I think by screening for AS we would be performing ourselves a severe disservice; think of all the suspected aspies in history who have changed the course of the world. Einstein, Edison, Newton. If their mothers had screened them for AS and subsequently aborted them before they were born, imagine where the world would have ended up.

I'm against genetic screening of any kind. I feel that every child should be brought into this world, whether or not they have a disability, no matter what the type or nature of that disability is. Every child is a gift from God and everybody who's conceived deserves a birthday. I'm also against the abortion of any child, disabled or not. If someone doesn't want their child, they should adopt the child to someone who does want it. Every child is a wanted child.

This, essentially.

I've worked with children with Down's Syndrome, and children with very severe autism plus severe learning disabilities. Either group could be socialised with fairly well... well, they couldn't, because of communication difficulties, but they would happily try and wouldn't realise that they made errors (and no doubt about it, the Downs children made as many errors as the autistic children!).

On one hand, I am almost certainly "less disabled" than the typical child with Downs syndrome. On the other hand, someone with mosaic Downs Syndrome is probably going to be "less disabled" than an autistic child with learning difficulties.

It is a stereotype to say all people with Downs are happy. I've never had a conversation with an adult with Downs syndrome, but even amongst the pre-pubescent Downs children I have talked to, they don't all have a sunny disposition. However, I think severe sensory issues can be unbelievably distressing for autistic people (but especially "low functioning" individuals if they don't understand the stimuli), which could mean autistic people are less likely to be happy.

Ultimately, I'd look at life expectancy. A baby born with Downs Syndrome has a life expectancy of 50-60 (source). Autism itself does not affect life expectancy, though we are more likely to be murdered or commit suicide (source). Obviously quantity of life isn't everything, but I would argue this makes Downs objectively bad, even if we allow for increased quality of life (which is highly debatable).

Pre-natal screening... personally, I'd like to think it would affect my decision. There will probably never be a decision to make, but I currently plan on having one child and wouldn't choose to screen for either condition (though I would try and minimise our risk of the foetus developing either). More widely, I think people would be perfectly within their rights to screen for either. I think people are perfectly within their rights to abort for any reason except the child's sex (simply because we need to maintain close to a 1:1 ratio).

I knew a teenage boy with Down's Syndrome who got took advantage of by his NT peers.

I also knew two girls with Down's Syndrome, one was 17 and the other was 19, and they were cousins. All they did was muck about, and had to be supervised and acted like 4-year-olds and had to be treated like 4-year-olds. I'm more functioning than that.

I suppose people are more aware of the condition of Down's Syndrome, but people with Down's Syndrome can still be vulnerable to bullies, and being socially awkward. It seems most people aren't afraid of people with Down's Syndrome like they seem to be with us, which is probably why it makes living with Asperger's more harder and make it feel more disabling in some areas.

Asperger's or Autism aren't the only conditions in the world that make a person socially awkward. Think of Jimmy from South Park. He's disabled, doesn't have Asperger's or Autism, is good with people, but is still socially awkward in other ways and can sometimes run into awkward situations with the other kids what are difficult for him to handle, and has sometimes been took advantage of because of his disability.

Attention all aspie readers:

If someone were to ask you "do you envy people with Down's Syndrome?" what would be your answer?








This aspie's answer to that question is "Are you friggin nuts? Ofcourse not!".