The trouble with levels and functioning

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firemonkey
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27 Nov 2019, 11:19 am

The trouble with levels and functioning is that it pays scant regard to the comorbidities that can go alongside being on the spectrum. Comorbidities that add to the difficulty in coping/functioning .



EzraS
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27 Nov 2019, 12:35 pm

I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.



firemonkey
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27 Nov 2019, 1:00 pm

EzraS wrote:
I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.


It's difficult to tell with me what goes to the forefront. I lead a quite/very simple life that means I'm not getting that much into situations where I'm floundering with higher order tasks. Some might call that 'avoidance' . They might well be right .



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27 Nov 2019, 1:53 pm

EzraS wrote:
I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.
Definitely.


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skibum
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27 Nov 2019, 1:55 pm

firemonkey wrote:
The trouble with levels and functioning is that it pays scant regard to the comorbidities that can go alongside being on the spectrum. Comorbidities that add to the difficulty in coping/functioning .
That is one of the problems. Another problem is that they don't account for the inconsistencies and variances in functioning abilities within each person.


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firemonkey
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27 Nov 2019, 2:32 pm

skibum wrote:
firemonkey wrote:
The trouble with levels and functioning is that it pays scant regard to the comorbidities that can go alongside being on the spectrum. Comorbidities that add to the difficulty in coping/functioning .
That is one of the problems. Another problem is that they don't account for the inconsistencies and variances in functioning abilities within each person.


A good point . Another thing , that I would raise , is the all too regular mentality that you being ok/good in one area means such ability is automatically transferable to another area . Failure to do so can result in accusations of being awkward/oppositional /passive aggressive etc .

It takes a family member/friend/professional who 'gets it' to see that's not always the case with us .



skibum
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27 Nov 2019, 2:43 pm

firemonkey wrote:
skibum wrote:
firemonkey wrote:
The trouble with levels and functioning is that it pays scant regard to the comorbidities that can go alongside being on the spectrum. Comorbidities that add to the difficulty in coping/functioning .
That is one of the problems. Another problem is that they don't account for the inconsistencies and variances in functioning abilities within each person.


A good point . Another thing , that I would raise , is the all too regular mentality that you being ok/good in one area means such ability is automatically transferable to another area . Failure to do so can result in accusations of being awkward/oppositional /passive aggressive etc .

It takes a family member/friend/professional who 'gets it' to see that's not always the case with us .
Yes, exactly. And the same goes for people who are considered low functioning. They can excel amazingly in ways that some of us can't even begin to be good at. And even the areas that you are good in, your ability to function in those areas can change dramatically depending on the circumstances. There may be times when you cannot do them at all.


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27 Nov 2019, 3:10 pm

I have ADHD as well as ASD but I have level 1 ASD, and it's very unusual for a female to be diagnosed so early in life with level 1 ASD (or Asperger's), even if it was the 1990s then. So I figure if I didn't have ADHD along with ASD, my ASD may have gone unnoticed until at least mid to late teens. Other females born in the late 80s and 90s with level 1 ASD seem to be diagnosed in adulthood.
And it seems other level 1 Aspies I know of (like my brother, diagnosed with level 1 ASD at 30) seem to make and keep friends with their NT peers, where as I had a harder time being accepted by my peers because of my hyperactivity and impulsive behaviours (I've read that non-Aspie children with ADHD can be rejected by their peers for those exact reasons).
I still get baffled to how Aspie children and adults have an easier time than me having normal social lives and have it easier than me to find NT friends to hang out with and be invited to parties and go on holidays with.

So being so I have high empathy levels, able to express how I feel and can make eye contact and mask my ASD symptoms you'd have thought I would have more friends like other level 1 Aspies, so I think having ADHD on top of ASD makes this more challenging.


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27 Nov 2019, 4:51 pm

I have a case of inconsistent functioning level that seem to float between level 0 and 2 in practical and behavioral terms.

The least severe would be a functionality of a highly competent professional adult wise and intelligence beyond my own years and experiences.
No possible comorbids, no disability, no difficulties.

The most severe is a picture of autistic level 2 minus the constant stimming, high levels of irresponsiveness and being nonverbal -- with the possibility of mimicing varying comorbids.
Observation so far; varying possible comorbids, several difficulties.


Cause? Unknown.


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livingwithautism
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28 Nov 2019, 11:15 pm

EzraS wrote:
I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.


I also put my autism in the forefront. It affects me the most out of all my diagnoses.



magz
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29 Nov 2019, 2:45 am

livingwithautism wrote:
EzraS wrote:
I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.

I also put my autism in the forefront. It affects me the most out of all my diagnoses.

I hope it's not inconsiderate to ask:
While autism affects you the most, do you think other disabilities may affect your autism?
May your autism be more manageable if other disabilities didn't drain you otherwise?
Just a thought, probably hard to answer.
It's based on my observations of myself - when my physical or mental health deteriorates, the autism symptoms become much more prominent.


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29 Nov 2019, 8:40 am

Don't people with autism and comorbid conditions use two labels? I have level 1 autism, but I'm level 2 in terms of overall disability due to a comorbid developmental disorder that affects my ability to function. I'd assumed that this was the normal labeling system. It seems to make the most sense.



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29 Nov 2019, 8:55 am

Labels are a crutch for the less intelligent who can't absorb a ton of information at once; that seems to be most of the population.



firemonkey
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29 Nov 2019, 9:03 am

BTDT wrote:
Labels are a crutch for the less intelligent who can't absorb a ton of information at once; that seems to be most of the population.


That's a presumptuous and not very intelligent statement .



livingwithautism
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29 Nov 2019, 12:05 pm

magz wrote:
livingwithautism wrote:
EzraS wrote:
I tend to put my autism in the forefront, but I hear what you are saying. They do make it worse. Someone my level without them would probably function better. Perhaps a lot better.

I also put my autism in the forefront. It affects me the most out of all my diagnoses.

I hope it's not inconsiderate to ask:
While autism affects you the most, do you think other disabilities may affect your autism?
May your autism be more manageable if other disabilities didn't drain you otherwise?
Just a thought, probably hard to answer.
It's based on my observations of myself - when my physical or mental health deteriorates, the autism symptoms become much more prominent.


I don't know because I do have the comorbidities and have no reference point of what it would be like to only have autism.



magz
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29 Nov 2019, 1:40 pm

livingwithautism wrote:
I don't know because I do have the comorbidities and have no reference point of what it would be like to only have autism.

Yeah, the quesiton is unanswearable :/


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