do you consider autism to be a disorder or a mere neurotype?

Post Reply New Topic

I think it's both. There are people who function very well and people who can't function at all on the ASD spectrum.

There are NT people who function very well and NT people who can't function at all.

When I worked in schools, I worked with dyslexic students. In one school, we tested all the students in the lower groups for dyslexia. Some of them...we just could not decide if they were dyslexic or just had such low intelligence they couldn't work out how to read or write. In the end we decided they had no dyslexia, just very low intelligence. That's what I mean- very low functioning NTs.

Yes, some NTs can be low-functioning if they have mental health issues like depression or a nervous breakdown or whatever.

But for an Aspie I am just as high-functioning as the average functioning NT, well in most ways anyway. Maybe in the future I might not cope financially if I was to lose my partner (due to death, not break-up, as we'll never break up) and may need to go to citizens advice for support. But that's what citizens advice is there for. Otherwise, I don't need help with communication or looking after myself.

It depends. I think "Autism" is a broad generalization and not all Autistics are the same.

It appears to me that Autism is not understood and the current DSM has described it in terms of symptoms without understanding a variety of underlying differences that cause them. (For comparison, you could diagnose "Atypical Gait" if you didn't know enough to distinguish if they have a stubbed toe, twisted ankle, broken foot, broken leg, paralyzed leg, deformed leg, wooden leg, etc.)

In some cases Autism is clearly a disabling disorder. Elsewhere on the Spectrum it is an awkward Neurotype that has difficulties blending into Neurtypical society.

It impedes you in society so it's a handicap. Thats how I view it.

Dyslexia is a handicap in today's society. But it wasnt a handicap for most people during most of history because the ability to read was not a survival skill for most of human existence (ie the whole stone age up until a couple hundred years ago).

But of course, if someone has very low intelligence, there are lots of things they can't do as well as read and write, such as look after themselves physically and emotionally. They need help with everything.

This does not have to be difficult to understand.

Autism is diagnosed on deficits , impairments things someone CANNOT DO, NOT WHAT THEY CAN DO.

So being good at maths or having a nerdy hobby does not make you autistic, this however does:-

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Diagnostic criteria)

A. Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, ranging, for example, from abnormal social approach and failure of normal back-and-forth conversation; to reduced sharing of interests, emotions, or affect; to failure to initiate or respond to social interactions.

Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction, ranging, for example, from poorly integrated verbal and nonverbal communication; to abnormalities in eye contact and body language or deficits in understanding and use of gestures; to a total lack of facial expressions and nonverbal communication.

Deficits in developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships, ranging, for example, from difficulties adjusting behavior to suit various social contexts; to difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends; to absence of interest in peers.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities, as manifested by at least two of the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive; see text):

Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, use of objects, or speech (e.g., simple motor stereotypies, lining up toys or flipping objects, echolalia, idiosyncratic phrases).

Insistence on sameness, inflexible adherence to routines, or ritualized patterns or verbal nonverbal behavior (e.g., extreme distress at small changes, difficulties with transitions, rigid thinking patterns, greeting rituals, need to take same route or eat food every day).

Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

Hyper- or hyporeactivity to sensory input or unusual interests in sensory aspects of the environment (e.g., apparent indifference to pain/temperature, adverse response to specific sounds or textures, excessive smelling or touching of objects, visual fascination with lights or movement).

negatives not positives here

The only objective thing I can claim it to be is a neurotype. Whether or not it manifests as a disorder or a strength depends on what the individual concerned is trying to do under whatever the prevailing circumstances happen to be. Those with ASD are probably often at an overall disadvantage within most mainstream societies, but whether or not that can justify calling it a disorder is debatable - if an aspect of somebody's behaviour is frowned on / discriminated against by the surrounding society, that in my view doesn't mean the behaviour is absolutely a disorder. Similarly, ASD traits aren't always a problem in the one who has the traits, they're a problem in the whole of society. I think it's only logical to thoroughly blame the individual's ASD if society is assumed to be blameless.

When the individual is alone, no doubt there are still ASD traits that manifest as impairments. There are also ASD traits that manifest as strengths. I suppose the balance of strengths and weaknesses under such circumstances depends on the individual concerned. I usually find that when I get an ASD-related problem, the behaviour of other people is very much involved with it being a problem, and that when a particular task doesn't involve anybody else, I seem to do pretty well.

Admittedly the normally-used diagnostic criteria are mostly about impairment, though for example on the AQ screening test there's a question about the ability to remember car number plates. And I'm not convinced that the normal diagnostic criteria represent the entire neurotype. They were created for inclusion in a diagnostic manual that's about nothing more than disorders. As such, they're more a set of tests for diagnosis than a definition. And it's not certain that the diagnostic criteria are the last word in the matter. These things occasionally get altered when the experts think they've been making a mistake.

I think of it as both. Though I'll admit I initially leaned more towards it being a disorder.
Just because I've had a lot of issues being able to function. Well and I've had people.telling.me broken my whole.life.

ToughDiamond, I'm inclined to agree with you that, for some of us, it is a difference...but we both know the DSM calls it a "disorder". I figure there are so many NTs who think people should be like them that they collectively believe we have a disorder.

For my type of Autism, hmmmm, when I thought everyone lived as wretchedly stressed as I did, it was fine. Now that I have discovered others don't have crippling stress trying to work, parent and brush their teeth... well... The answer would be for me to "right size" the demands of my life to my abilities... but I wouldn't meet my internalized NT expectations (to do it all) alongside my ASD expectations (to do it well). The "disorder" is trying to do both.

In my own case, it doesn't matter.
My own autism is not someone else's autism.
And someone's autism is not my autism.

My own life and experiences is not someone else's life, their life and experiences is not mine.

Their disorder might be just be mere neurotype from my point of view...
And their neurotype might be disorder in my eyes.
It doesn't even have to be autism specifically.

Neurotype, disorders -- management and outcomes matters more.

There are people who don't have anything to mind and manage to get things done -- and there are those who had to.
Latter doesn't necessarily had to be a disorder.

Not everyone can afford to.
In the perfect world everyone can, even the so-called lucky ones need not to be 'perfect'.


If one wants a semantics definition from me -- all disorders can be made by neurotypes.
But not all kinds of neurotypes are disorders or cause disorders.

Neurotype is based on the wiring.

The hardware in the brain. Some are more fragile, some are not.
Not the software, not the components, not the ad ons, not the peripherals and accessories. Though it can influence the wiring's health and efficiency.

Inefficient wiring is still a wiring.
Mis-wiring, while is a wiring, it's a disordered wiring.

Low quality wiring is simply that -- vulnerable, fragile or inefficient. Cannot afford reckless or complicated stuff. Possibly a form of 'malnutrition' or a form of 'malformation'. Not the wiring itself.

Frayed wiring is not a wiring -- it's a worry over 'habits and behaviors' of how that came to be.
Wiring that lost it's luster quicker is not wiring -- that's a 'disease'.
Wiring that is not doing what isn't supposed to be doing -- that's a 'disorder'. Or not; something might be missing to begin with; a 'malfunction' or a 'dysfunction'. Still not a wiring.
Wirings that has been cut or damaged -- is an 'injury'.
Wirings that is contaminated that may or may not become more effective -- that's an infection that can lead to diseases and injury.

So..
Is your autism a wiring (neurotype)?
An injury? A disorder? A disease?
Or reaction influenced by something else that had nothing to do with wiring?

No one will get it from my case because I don't know how mine truly came to be.
It could be an injury and a full blown disorder for all I know.

Gained Number Post Count (1).
Lose Time (n).

Lose more time here - Updates at least once a week.