Autism a Disability Poll

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For me, it's a special ability, paired with a social disability.

Is not driving a car or being able to ride a bike disability? Those cause me major impairment. I'm stuck with taking transit and a lot of walking. My social ability isn't great but luckily I don't really care. My anxiety can drive me nuts sometimes, but I think I got it from my mom who isn't autistic. Overall I would vote yes.

...Voted " Yes " .

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Renal kidney failure, congestive heart failure, COPD. Can't really get up from a floor position unhelped anymore:-(.
One of the walking wounded ~ SMASHED DOWN by life and age, now prevented from even expressing myself! SOB.
" Oh, no! First you have to PROVE you deserve to go away to college! " ~ My mother, 1978 (the heyday of Andy Gibb and Player). I would still like to go.
My life destroyed by Thorazine and Mellaril - and rape - and the Psychiatric/Industrial Complex. SOB:-(! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !!

Definitely a disability. Invariably. It doesn't necessarily disable a person in every area of function, but it does create significant obstacles for a person to cope with in their attempts to achieve a standard quality of independent life. I have seen autistics who claim that it isn't a disability and that it only causes impairments because of the way that society is built (because I guess my inability to cope with bright lights is the fault of whoever installed them? ). More commonly, though, I've seen Aspies debating heatedly what constitutes a clinical "impairment." If a person can manage a demanding task (like holding down a typical job) but it causes them more exhaustion and anxiety, are they impaired? If a person excels in university without accommodations, despite the social and executive functioning challenges, are they impaired? The Aspies who can do these things are usually the ones who claim that autism isn't a disability. At the same time, they claim that these (lower stamina and higher anxiety but equal abilities) are clinical impairments, warranting a diagnosis of a disorder. If this group's symptoms are embraced by the ASD criteria, then there is an argument to be made for "autism is not always a disability." But I am highly skeptical of this group's outlook on autism and society at large, and I don't believe that most diagnosticians recognize the "different not disabled" sub-type.

I’m disabled because I should have gone much farther than I did.

Im 38 years on a clerical job, and never been promoted.

And it’s not because I don’t know my job...

I’m disabled in other ways, too. Like I have no idea how to organize a house or organize a room for a party.

I can never be a teacher. I can’t run a classroom and I have trouble encouraging learning in people who don’t want to learn. Other people have that ability. I don’t.

I’m disabled in my verbal and sometimes my written expression.

It’s obvious to others that I’m disabled.

Of course it is. And my view has been succinctly expressed here:

Definitely a disability. Invariably. It doesn't necessarily disable a person in every area of function, but it does create significant obstacles for a person to cope with in their attempts to achieve a standard quality of independent life. I have seen autistics who claim that it isn't a disability and that it only causes impairments because of the way that society is built (because I guess my inability to cope with bright lights is the fault of whoever installed them? ). More commonly, though, I've seen Aspies debating heatedly what constitutes a clinical "impairment." If a person can manage a demanding task (like holding down a typical job) but it causes them more exhaustion and anxiety, are they impaired? If a person excels in university without accommodations, despite the social and executive functioning challenges, are they impaired? The Aspies who can do these things are usually the ones who claim that autism isn't a disability. At the same time, they claim that these (lower stamina and higher anxiety but equal abilities) are clinical impairments, warranting a diagnosis of a disorder. If this group's symptoms are embraced by the ASD criteria, then there is an argument to be made for "autism is not always a disability." But I am highly skeptical of this group's outlook on autism and society at large, and I don't believe that most diagnosticians recognize the "different not disabled" sub-type.

On the whole, its a disability for me. Its really hard for me to conceal in public. I have trouble with sensory overload, meltdowns, panic attacks, anxiety.

Living on this planet, just doesn't feel right. Everything is too loud, too bright, too much - everything

Could be in certain cases.

Within society and for the sake of procuring help it is a disability. Beyond that I feel there is room for some discussion.

Autism Is a different brain wiring system. So many functions of it are seen as odd by NT standards but would otherwise be harmless. The world around us not set up for us, so we are impaired in our ability to function in this world. Some of us more than others of course. Even in a world set up for the autistic mind there would undoubtedly be those who were unable to 'live' without help.

For myself, I generally don't think that having a different wiring system is a disability - brain diversity may very well be a good thing. However it comes with things, attributes, symptoms, co-morbids that can be or are debilitating. I sort of think of it like a different computer's operating system that hasn't had the bugs worked out.

Seems people are preoccupied with labels these days....