Autism and early childhood

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Autism severity can change substantially during early childhood

Thanks for sharing, firemonkey. I’ve long felt that there are two major variables affecting the prognosis for life of a child born autistic:
1. The ability of his family to provide a highly structured, disciplined(note: this does not =spanking) upbringing. Autism must not be an excuse for bad manners/behaviour.
2. The innate intellectual capacity of the child. If a child receives strict parenting/social guidance/instruction, then his intellectual capacity is the factor that will hinder or allow him to become increasingly self-sufficient in society.

The higher the IQ, the greater potential for success in life. But, without appropriate social guidance/training in early childhood and beyond, an autistic person with a very high IQ can remain totally dysfunctional.

I’ve watched my three children, two sons, one daughter develop into adults, and each is so different from the other. When I look at my youngest son, who was the most profoundly affected, and see him today, I’m staggered at how far he’s come, and it was a VERY traumatic experience that both he and we, as a family went through, with him. Now, that high IQ I was told he had, when assessed at the age of 5yrs, may have increased his chances of doing as well as he’s doing, but I can’t help but feel that there’s alot more at play than just IQ in determining outcomes. My sister, has ID and ASD, but has far exceeded any expectations, has worked long and hard, owns her own home, drives, and has good long-term friends. She teaches tai-chi. I believe her biggest handicap in life, was her ability to be taken advantage of by others, due to her naivety. Maturation and life experience have helped. There’s very little she cannot do if she sets her mind to it.

I would definitely dispute the male to female ratio they mentioned.

I wouldn't like to say who are worse; parents who throw a hissy fit because their child doesn't come top of the class, or parents like mine that didn't react at all when my academic performance went on a downward trajectory from the age of 9.5 or so.

What I do know is I was more defiant than my brother and sister. Discipline was there , but not to an extreme degree. The only time I recall being spanked was after I badmouthed what was regarded as the best childminder in San Francisco , to the degree she said she'd never childmind for my parents again .

Usually defiance from a child, autistic or otherwise, is simply a way to test that parents mean what they say. That they can be relied upon to make us feel secure and safe. Can you pinpoint what caused the downward spiral of your academic performance(eg bullying, depression or other?) if it’s okay to ask. Just curious. Yes, parents whose only concern is that their child gets top marks in school are missing the big picture alright ... can’t imagine not valuing happiness and stability/mental health above academic prowess.

It's perfectly OK to ask. It was the summer term of 1967. I developed mumps on the flight back to boarding school. That resulted in my missing about 3 weeks of schooling . That was probably just coincidental The real reason was most probably due to having a learning difficulty. That was never picked up on . The same kind of child nowadays would be labelled as 2e, and given some support.

Thanks, firemonkey. So sorry to hear that it wasn’t picked up on, as it’s clear you wish it had been. I was glad my struggles weren’t picked up on, and I had measles and a number of incidents of swollen glands(my Dad has always been anti-vaccinations ... something I truly suffered for and wish I’d been vaccinated for). It’s different though, when you know that extra support might have helped you looking back. Hope you’re happier in your life now?