Imagining Autism in the future

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Curious how you all might see Autism in say 50 to 100 years time, from Diagnosis, to
replacing the word Autism and everything in-between.

I remember there was some medical discussion of the ethics of whether it would be ethical to abort autistic babies in the future. In which case autism might become even more stigmatized in the future than it is today.

Alternatively, with increasing autism rates (if you believe that), people might become more accepting of autistic folk as it will be more of a norm', the more autistic folk there are that exist.

Strengths as well as weaknesses being explored by society to build upon autistic strengths for employment. Some IT companies are already seeking out autistics I hear.

More breakthroughs in genetics..finding DNA sequences that correlate with autism. So diagnosis becomes more scientific.

Autism as a medical term is an umbrella condition born out of science lack of understanding of the brain rather than a single condition.

Because of lack of understanding it suits science to put these things under one label, just as it suit science to separate the comorbid conditions like ADHD, so they can be individually treated.

Autism itself as a diagnosis is unlikely to survive, although they may continue to use the general term "autism symptoms".

In the future the condition will be split into the various sub autisms, each with their own preventions, possible treatments & maybe cures.

Yeah. Thats another thing. They just got through marrying it together, but in the future autism likely be broken asunder in to differenti "autisms". Many will have some biochemical or genetic marker. And there be more specific treaments for and counciling and aptitude recognition and training for each.

It is a spectrum. I can only speak to the "Autism" I have.

I would hope Autism Acceptance would be widespread and social norms would be accommodating to the differences between Autistics and the NTs.

When I look at Internet lists of famous people thought possibly to have been Autistic (and some of the names make a lot of sense!) I conclude Autistics can have a positive advantage for society.

Its a "spectrum" of disability rather than a spectrum of condition there`s zero biological evidence that autism and Asperger's are the same causes. Its put together as ASD because its convenient at the moment.

In the future its unlikely to be like that.

I see a future where autistic children are specially trained to guide humanity through the challenges and difficulties of a world in crisis due to mismanagement, war, overpopulation, rising temperatures etc. Using our unique perspectives and skills we will help humanity survive it’s own failures, and eventually achieve global domination.

DSM-IV's Asperger's criteria are now within DSM-5's Autism Spectrum criteria and that is where I am on that spectrum. I would freely concede that my spot on the spectrum is not representative of the entire spectrum.

For that matter, I don't know whether Asperger's encompasses some variety.

I speak only for my spot on the Autism Spectrum. My "disability" is that I do not think and behave like NTs. It is NTs who say I am disabled because I am not like them. But I've done well enough in life I would feel absolutely foolish saying I was disabled.

Works for me !

Considering that the DSM IV had different autism subtypes, (Asperger's Syndrome/HFA/PDD-NOS/childhood disintegrative disorder etc.) and we now have the DSM V which groups everything under one label, 'autistic spectrum disorder', I fail to see how autism terms would become more complicated in the future, regardless of the biological causes that might be found for different types.

The trend currently seems to be to simplify and provide an umbrella term, rather than make things more complicated.

The trend is that way because it was too complicated diagnosing them as separate conditions. There were too many people who were difficult to pin point so they just used the umbrella term.

When causation is found for each condition it will be removed from the umbrella and called its separate thing.

This is already happening many things that were called autism / ID in the past are given a new name usually linked to the gene effected.

Me too!

I think this is what the world needs, doubt the global domination bit. We will be used as long as needed then go back be being second class citizens, bullied and socially excluded. In the biblical story of the Jews in Egypt, the Joseph saves Egypt from famine but, once he's gone the Jews are enslaved. I am not religious but I do believe these stories have lasted millenia because they demonstrate the true nature of humans. Unfortunately I don't know what the alternative is. Let humanity kill itself?

I thought Asperger's was a sub category of autism. Something to distinguish autistic people with average or higher intelligence and high social skills from people with classic autism and intellectual disabilities. Like there are high functioning neurotypicals with high IQ and great social skills and there are poorly functioning neurotypicals with a low IQ and poor social skills, but they are, no question about it, all neurotypical.

Simply: autism has genetic causes.

We will work on some of these genes and eliminate it.

So the answer is that there won't be autism at all in the future.

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In a hundred years we won't even be around as human beings.

There will be self-aware robots.

Enough.