The reasons behind Autistic behaviours

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Sorry about the title, as far as I have read up to now there's no such thing as Autistic Behaviours but rather Autistic Reactions, anyway some days ago I read a post where it was pointed out that it's not the reaction making the diagnosis but rather the reasons behind it.

I'm not sure the concept goes through the right way though but it does make an awful lot of sense, so... let's take the following list of so called symptoms, what I'm asking is to name those you show and explain what brings you there be it a process, a lot of stuff or whatever.
I would find it particularly useful if those who've been diagnosed would share something they discovered through their path about it.

List:
- impairement in the use of multiple non verbal behaviours
- failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level
- lack of spontaneous seeking to share
- lack of social emotional reciprocity
- encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest
- stereotyped and repetitive motor or mannerism
- persistent preoccupation with parts of objects

I think whether autistic behaviors are considered reactions to our environments depends on how we wish to define reaction. For example, an aspie with a special interest in, say, nuclear physics or liberalism do not normally engage in these activities as part of a fight, flight, or adapt response, though it certainly is the case that these things could not be special interests if our environment did not provide them. I think it is the case that most human reactions, whether autistic or NT, are reactions in some way to the environment the individual finds himself or herself in.

Of course, reaction could also be interpreted to refer to what the biologists call irritability, which is where, say, if somebody steps on our toes, we try to move out of the way, or if we are cold, we put on warmer clothing. Irritability is a characteristic of all living things; without it life could not exist as we know it.

The scientific/materialist approach stipulates that most, if not all, of our behaviors are a result of our genetics and individual chemical makeup, which are not necessarily synonymous. I believe autism to be a case in point, as neither good environment, talk therapies, or medications provide more than superficial amelioration of its symptoms. The big question is whether autism is genetic, a result of toxic or biological assaults, or both.

Ciao.

Last edited by Thelibrarian on 04 Oct 2013, 10:31 am, edited 1 time in total.

I'm game.

- impairement in the use of multiple non verbal behaviours

I don't listen well. I listen intently but I don't comprehend the spoken word well. Because of this, I concentrate on the syntax not the tone. I concentrate on the data not the information. To ensure I get the data right, I look at the speaker's mouth and read his/her lips as they speak to ensure that I have the proper conversation and the proper data which I will parse in my head later.

Because I am concentrating on the words and the lips, I miss all other non-verbal communication queues when face to face.

- failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level

My wife is 13 years my senior. I am diagnosed, she is not, but from her perspective, her husband is 13 years her junior. Neither of us get much from people in our own age group other than scorn. I know I cannot maintain a friendship. Associating with people with whom friendship is impossible or far less likely allows me to avoid the whole, I am autistic and I will never be a good friend to you so don't bother with me, conversation.

I think people in a different age demographic expect different things from an association; not a close friendship.

- lack of spontaneous seeking to share

This is an OCD of mine that drives others nuts. I share too much probably due to years of complaints that I was too isolated in the early school years.

- lack of social emotional reciprocity

In a social situation, I am concentrating on the data. The message is lost. If someone is crying, I am solution oriented and will concentrate on how to stop the crying. I won't even comprehend the concept of offering comfort, I am focused on attacking the problem and providing a solution to 'fix the problem'. In groups at parties, I am unable to manage the conversation and am seen as a party pooper as I just don't get the 'jist' of the conversation, I only record the data and try to validate it or enhance it.

- encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest

Boy can I go down the rabbit hole on something of interest. It occupies my time so that time passes without my notice. I set reminders at work to remind me to go home. I have worked the night through without realizing it due to how deep down the rabbit hole I go. Usually, what captures my attention so deeply is a complex algorithm in SQL or C# like a cursor, analytic or multi-dimensional nested loop structure. I'm getting all warm and fuzzy just thinking about them.

- stereotyped and repetitive motor or mannerism

I broke a few stims when I was growing up. Repetitions like drumming my fingertips on my thumb or on a desktop in a specific sequence and the utter inability to stop the sequence once started. Parents and teachers used to whack my hands when they would 'catch' me playing with my fingertips, so I started to do the sequence in my head. I used to throw locks in a specific pattern and turn on or off lights with a specific patter of flips of the switch to ensure that not only have I performed the task, but that I can continue to do so and that the switch will likely work later when I attempt the task again. I exhibited in my youth many similar routines as Jack Nicholson exhibited in 'As Good as it Gets'.

To this day I use routines to manage my movements and thoughts. I drive the same routes, eat the same food wear the same clothes (until my wife intervenes), etc. I exploit this, have incorporated variables and have taught my wife to do so as well. Squiggy (our dog) knows these routines and anticipates my movements like she were wearing a watch. If there is a behavior we want me to change, I simply find the routine that triggers it and modify the routine. The behavior is often changed in a matter of days as the new routine becomes 'routine'.

- persistent preoccupation with parts of objects
I may have one but the topic is not for discussion in a G rated forum. I think NTs may call this aspect a 'fetish'.

I concur.

At issue with autistics, I believe, is that our senses alter our perception of our environment and therefore cause 'typical' autistic reactions due to similar sensory differences from NTs. I have long stated that I can see music or smell a chocolate bar at 100 yards. My wife cannot tolerate tags in her shirts. Odd sensitivities to stimuli is well documented in autistics and is likely the cause of many of our reactions to said stimuli.

One's own reality is determined by our interpretation of what our senses tell us about our environment. Since autistics sense the world differently than NTs we are often considered 'detached from reality' when in fact, our reality is just as valid and sometimes more valid due to keener senses (more dramatic responses to stimuli).

Since autistics and NTs tend to have senses that group us in one bucket or the other, we call autistic behavior 'typical autistic behavior' and we just call NTs 'typical'.

Let me try.....

I didn't even KNOW there was such as thing as nonverbal bahviours until I was almost an adult.

Because they were almost exclusively into drinking, sex and fighting, none of which I could fake an interest in. Still to this day prefer the company of children and seniors and I'm sure more than one person thinks I'm a weirdo because of that.

Everytime I tried to share I was laughed at

Ditto to the above. As well, I'm still oblivious to social cues

I dunno, just seems natural to me

Because I feel if I do things out of step I will mess them up

I'm not sure this really applies to me but I tend to collect meaningless data. Why? I have no idea and know it's irrational but strangely brings me comfort.

Thank you all for your kind and thorough answers, it's really helpful and this kind of insight along with a good in deapth animated discussion with Fnord some time ago on this very forum and the post I named which was written by Willard made me reconsider my position about having Aspergers myself exactly because I realized you all have a very hard time answering the question I asked appart from a thorough analysis of behavioural patterns, but answering the question "why do you have a meltdown?" to you all is like being asked why do you scream when you're hurt?
You do because you do.

As much as I do share the symptoms listed there, the answers I'm about to list will show you why the sudden change of mind:

- impairement in the use of multiple non verbal behaviours

Yes. I don't make eye contact because after many uears of complaints about my eyes being too intense I deliberately chose to reduce eye contact to a minimum, I modified my hand and body language to suit the needs of others because my body language used (and actually still does) to have the same effect as eye contact.

- failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level

Yes. At some point I reject people my age for lack of shared interests, but honestly people are generally extremely attracted to me and I don't need to do anything to approach because both men and women usually approach me even before I can think of doing anything.

- lack of spontaneous seeking to share

Yes. Because my thoughts are so quick and they jump from one thing to the other that sharing becomes impossible and when I do people don't get my point because of the enormous amount of emotional information I throw in and the frequent gaps in my trail of thoughts.

- lack of social emotional reciprocity

Yes. The intensity of my emotions is such that it never happened to me to see them requited, I more often then not find myself wondering if the other person is even alive, at which point I close up and kill any form of emotional communication losing contact with the social concept of friendship and end up being the one not feeling what I should feel for the person who considers him/herself my friend.

- encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest

Yes. I have a desperate need for emotional stimuli and when something captures my attention I become addicted to it, the higher the academic level the more the emotional burst the strongest the addiction, which also goes with extreme levels of focus.

- Stereotyped and repetitive motor or mannerism

I do show motor repetitive patterns, an extreme attachment to routine and repetitive mannerism, such things are to me a way out of family and working pressure, I'm extremely rebellious and when I feel in cage I react generating self destructory behaviour mimiking jail.

- persistent preoccupation with parts of objects

Yes. Until it provides an emotional burst.

So, if what I've learned here I understood right my diagnosis will be "INFP personality type with passive-aggressive behaviours" and not Aspergers. At the time being I feel understanding you to me is much easier then it is to any NT because what they live with you I live with every person I come across, I think I am right on the other side of NTs eventually building a category by myself