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Regarding Aspergers Syndrome and Autism Spectrum in General
January 25, 2014 - 12:42pm
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For those who are interested in this particular subject, I thought I'd share the following blog.
http://differentsortofsolitude.wordpress.com/
It's written by a young man with Aspergers, and looks at life, the world of disability, and forming relationships and just getting by through his experiences and observations. I found particularly interesting the first two posts at the bottom where he struggles with definitions.
Disclaimer: The author is also my son, but it's pretty good anyway.
This is amazing, moving,... thank you so much for sharing, oldgoat! I've got a lot of learning and reading to do before I can say more.
Yeah, it's very interesting, though the myriad of categories and labels that he creates by his second post on Jan 5 had me a bit lost.
Thanks for the kind words, everyone.
Mark, I've been thinking about maybe adding a glossary to the main page of the site in order to explain all the categories and labels in one place.
I've spent a lot of time observing a lot of different stuff in the autistic culture, and a lot of what I've observed doesn't have a name yet. Which sometimes makes it difficult to describe.
The development of the English language is ponderous when compared to the rapidly expanding diversity of human experience.
Why am I fighting a powerful urge to ban this person?
Do it, Daddy.
Oh Lordy, both of them!
<Going by past behaviour... you'll ban all 3!
I have really enjoyed reading your blog, David_P. My oldest son is on the spectrum.
Very interesting to read, and thank you for sharing.
As a kid I was classified as gifted. I doubt I would be considered neurotypical. There are many similar characteristics between gifted and ASD children, and at one point in my adult life my sister wondered if I'd had Asperger's all this time. I don't think I do, because when I look at a list of typical differences, I always fall into the gifted category.
But I think the label is a misnomer. It means I have a heightened perception and a different learning style that happens to be very helpful in school. But it also means I have problems with self-regulation, a tendency for information overload, a propensity to be mortifyingly embarrassing in public if I am not well-grounded. I do not remember exact visuals or experiences very well unless I am focusing on the details I need to recall. The part about a surplus of empathy (Jan 5) resonated with me, as sometimes I am perceiving so much emotional and sensory info that I fail to focus on the here and now, and appear to be distant.
Self-awareness has helped me at least understand how my mind and body operate so that I can make wiser decisions. At the same time, part of the challenge is to retreat from analyzing myself at appropriate intervals, in order to avoid creating needless anxiety. :)
Perhaps you know someone diagnosed as being Neurologically Typical:
It seemed sort of seasonal to put this here. It's a piece my kid just wrote for "Disability Horizons"
http://disabilityhorizons.com/2016/12/christmas-through-the-eyes-of-some...
Interesting and insightful, and a reminder that the season is not the same for everyone. Thanks for sharing oldgoat.
We got our own education into this in the past year with a family member who had been diagnosed as a child, but who, because of chaanges in the parameters , is no longer considered on the spectrum, although she has some autistic traits. Good in some ways, because we are getting some idea of what is going on, but confusing because after years being considered autistic, she is no longer.
Ultimately a good thing, because in reading that article it rings true now that she does not share those traits. And also a reminder that medical stuff, and brain stuff in particular, is hardly a exact science.
Good article.
What's fascinating for me is that while I don't identify as being on the autism spectrum, so much of what the author wrote rings true for me. Not in a polite, "I can see how someone might feel this way" way, but in a "yes, yes YES" (or perhaps "no, no, NO") way. One of the challenges of hooking up with my wife was spending holidays with her family.
Loud kids, messes, new people, forced social interactions, disorganization, strangers maybe wanting to touch me, and spontaneous sing-alongs = "please shoot me, for the love of God".
Great article. Our oldest son who is on theSpectrum experiences many of the same difficulties.
ETA: An interesting article I just came across aimed at parents whose children havd sensory challenges.
http://www.thesensoryspectrum.com/create-predictability-for-sensory-diff...