'Curing'-another thread asking everyone here-

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Countzarroff,
Are you saying that personality and ASD can be separated? If a cure were available and taken, what about things like eye contact, not wanting to be touched, the way we feel emotions....aren't they part of AS (or Autism) so would change with a hypothetical cure?

I know...some of you may be saying that since it's hypothetical I should not worry or think about it. Is it enough to say that there are things I can't share so do need to think about it and would like other's opinions of it?

Question for those of you who would choose not to be cured: Are you against the existance of a cure? The work and studies to develop one?

I'm sort of ok on it because even though I won't accept a cure if it's ever available, I think those who want it should be able to have it.

It's just that most groups/organizations that are working for a cure are so negative. I wish there was one working for a cure in a more positive way and emphasized that they are not working for a cure for people who don't want one. I wish there were a group that respected us.

Yes, I'm against it.

Autism "cure" research? All going to two things: One, to drugs that modify behavior, such as researching the effect of the new atypical antipsychotics on the autistic mind. And two, to a prenatal test to detect autistic fetuses.

Neither one is something I agree with. Autistic people need education; drugs shouldn't be more than an incidental aid to learning. And a prenatal test? Well, you remember what happened once a prenatal test for Down Syndrome was developed. 90-some percent of DS fetuses get aborted, and there's very little research going into trying to cure it anymore. That's the only thing we have to look forward to from autism cure research.

If we were to divert even some of the money going to "cure" research to try to find a good way to educate autistic people, we could do so much good. But there's hardly any money going to that. It's all "cure", as though there weren't millions of autistics alive today, undereducated, underemployed, and dependent when they don't have to be.

In any case, a "cure" for autism would not be something you could use on autistic adults. It would have to be used on autistic fetuses and possibly very young infants. By the time a child gets any older than that, autistic brain patterns have crystallized.

It's very much like PKU that way (PKU: congenital disorder, detectable and treatable); PKU has to be detected in the nursery, or the child will automatically get mental retardation. At that point, treatment can stop the progress, but it can't change what's already there. And PKU is an extremely simple condition compared to autism.

Certain stuff, I'd like to cure. I'd like to be able to drive without going into "shutdown" and endangering myself and other people, for example.

Other than that, no. I like being me. I don't want more of my brain devoted to reading people's behaviour. Let them tell me stuff straight out.

I am not against the existence of a cure/change for those who want to be cured/changed. Some of us are happy, and some are not. So since my wish is that we all can be happy, then those who need to be cured/changed may do so if such a cure/change is ever found.

I do like to add that although I am happy with being autistic, I have gone through therapy for coaching skills to deal with such things as being a better father and husband (able to try to engage more in what they like to do, and opening up better with them and listening).

But as I always say---if someone were to place that magic "cure pill" in front of me, I would strongly refuse it---I would say "No!! !"

This is a tough one. I guess ultimately, I'd like to be able to cure certain things about me, but still retain who I am as a person.

I'm not against genetic research. 90% of "new autistic" will be aborted? Is not my problem, is their parent problem. We all need choce. Your choce about abortion is not mine. I was talking yesterday with my uncle (AS with an AS child) about the Obama's funding for a genetic research and a cure and he said "oh well, who the hell will abort an Autistic child? It's so dumb. But will be cool to know our genetic". And I agree with him. I'll not abort another AS child, never. But I like to understand our genetic difference, I want to know what make me very high functioning, what make someone "classic", wich genes are involved, etc.. I like research into genetic code. Once we will have it, we can test many different kind of autistic people, we can test "great geniuses", we can test different personalities like INTJ/P kind and see the difference. See if there is a genetic in common or not, see if the "functioning" is a matter of environment or not. It will not solve the problem but we will be able to understand the differences and knowing that you can focus on specific strategies.
Let's suppose another thing... suppose that we find that autistic and genius genes are the same, suppose that we find that the difference is triggered by environment.

P.S.
I don't want a cure for me.
I don't want a cure for my wife.
I don't want a cure for my family.
I don't want a cure for my children.
After that what other people does with their life is their choce.
But
I want to know, baddly I belive more in genetic than psycology. I'll be in line to take a genetic test for autism. To be cured? No. Just to know.

You guys who say "you can have a cure but I don't want one" are being really idealistic. Every indication in the world is that a cure would be forced on you, whether you liked it or not. People would see it just like locking up schizohprenics and making them take medication--it's for your own good, and thanks to your own mental state, you can't understand how much you need it. If they developed a cure for adults, you wouldn't be able to get health insurance; you wouldn't be able to get a job; you wouldn't be able to get any help, at all, with anything, without agreeing to take it. A cure means the end of autistic society. All but the very highest-functioning people who never need help with anything and can fly under the radar would simply be extinguished.

Probably the situation in USA is different, here in Italy society can't make you take drugs. NEVER. Unless you are considered a problem for public safety.

I think there would be a percentage of moderate to high-functioning Aspies who would refuse on principle. The government is the first to talk up the strengths and potential capabilities of AS sufferers in this category when it comes to making welfare payments so it would be hypocritical of them to suddenly say that these Aspies are incapable of making their own decisions.

My concern would be with infants under the supervision of well-meaning parents who give the children this medication in the belief that this is the best thing for their children. The child is helpless and would have all Aspie tendencies removed before he/she ever knew they existed.

It's also likely that any cure would be far from perfect and would erase the Autistic qualities of the individual while leaving him/her way short of high-flying NT material.

Well, I like myself as I am--even with a host of shortcomings.

What makes me reluctant about a, "cure," is the uncertainty. Even if my brain were rewired tomorrow, would I be equipped to handle it? Curing a physical deficit is all well and good (assuming that the cure isn't worse than the disease). But in the case of my AS, I am not persuaded that I would be any better off.

I do not have an extensive group of friends, as my particular 'flavour' does it's 'work' heavily on the social interaction-scene. For sure I'd like that fixed. I refuse invitations to parties by default, because I simply know I will get bored there, simply because I can only join in to very specific conversations.
Sure, I've learned tactics, to cope with what's being expected in a work environment, like looking at someone who's addressing you. I also 'pick up' and copy certain behavioural patterns from NT's. Since I'm high-functioning, and praised for it by my bosses, it's fairly easy to 'fly under their radar'. Only a few key people there know my condition, and they are forbidden to distribute that at work. With the (non-existent) 'people skills' my actual boss has, he'd bound to take all the wrong conclusions if he were to find that out.
I don't go all-destructive when experiencing an overload, but go into hyperventilating. I have tried to control it, but that's quite impossible. Naturally, I'd like to have that cured too.
However, what pertains to my 'high-functioning'-part needs to be kept intact.

It would be of no use to me, I'm not interested in being normal, I am interested in being better.

If a cure ever came about---I will not take it. And if anyone tried to force it on me...I will hide away in the remotest regions of my realm. I live in a free country---at least that it was what my country is said to be---so I am free to refuse it. And if for some reason they take away insurances and whatever to try to force me---well, I look at that this way. If I did take the cure, the person I am now would be dead/gone. At least by refusing, I will still be alive.