The Autistic Me

A recommended column: Caring for Your Introvert - The Atlantic Why would I post a link to an article on "introverts" to The Autistic Me? Because I've had a handful of parents and teachers suggest to me that the quiet young people we might call "geeks" or "nerds" are "on the spectrum." The implication is that introversion itself is a pathology. This view of introversion is the result of viewing anyone asocial as somehow defective. Introversion is not a disorder. Shyness is sometimes the cause, but sometimes a person simply likes to be alone -- without being shy. Also, being asocial is not the same as being destructively anti-social. You can simply want to be alone without hating people. Not everyone with a desire for solitude is a misanthrope. Social people do have more "success" in politics, business, and in some academic settings. We all know that social skills do, rightly or wrongly, affect our success in life, even when we don...

More from the draft of A Spectrum of Relationships . Collegial Cooperation Some of us want our colleagues to become our friends, while some people are more comfortable keeping work relationships distinctly professional. Whether you want to create a social network or a professional network of colleagues, you do have to master cooperating with colleagues. Building a network can be a challenge for autistic individuals, but technology is making this a bit easier.  My suggestion for autistic employees — and all employees — is to be available when colleagues have questions. The more willing you are to share information, the more likely coworkers will help you when you have a question or need assistance. An autistic person doesn’t need to be the most socially skilled employee to build a good network of colleagues. What matters in business, especially technical fields, is how well you share knowledge.  When I share information, I always try to pass along where the answer could be fou...

A life less ordinary? From an autistic boy: A different perspective on autism and function I encourage everyone to read the linked blog post. The child's view has greater clarity than most adults' views of autism. He's certainly "high functioning" but that doesn't diminish his insights.

It happens in every support group, online or in real life. It happens at conferences and on Web-based blogs. For whatever reason, there is eventually the "trump card" that someone uses to end a discussion: Your life / your child's life with [autism | other challenge(s)] is not nearly as bad as my life / my child's life with [autism | other challenge(s)]. Someone will feel compelled to respond, "No my life is worse!" The conversation spirals downward, a complete celebration of misery, despair, and self-pity. About that point, I exit and seek out something animated to watch -- from Disney to Warner Bros, anything is better than people competing to be the most damaged human in the group. The problem is that most of us have an impulse to respond to such nonsense. We don't like to have our own experiences discounted by someone else. It feels lousy to be dismissed, especially if it is by someone unfamiliar with our personal stories. Too often, the person co...

See the full story online and you can locate the journal article, as well. Scientists Link 'Sets' of Genetic Abnormalities to Autism Risk - US News and World Report Searching for links between genetic irregularities and abnormal motor control and/or learning disabilities, the study authors focused on so-called CNVs -- "copy number variations" -- that occur when the number of copies of a particular gene varies from one individual to the next. These CNVs accounted for relatively big chunks of the genetic mutations, the researchers said. In all, about 800 CNVs were identified as exclusive to autistic children. In addition, the CNVs in question tended to be found in genes central to the impaired biological functions that show up in autistic behavior, such as those involving synapse function, nerve cell communication, and brain development, the CHOP researchers said. Ashley Scott-Van Zeeland, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Scripps Translational Science Institu...

Someone asked me if I oppose all behavioral therapy for children with autism. No, I don't. In fact, I support more research so we can better refine whatever treatments and supports do work for people with autism. I just despise, truly despise, some fringe groups and dangerous ideas about the nature of autism. This week, a social work student from New York brought to my attention a teacher who cited Autism and Childhood Psychosis by Frances Tustin. The book, first published in the early 1970s, embraces the "narcissistic" view of autism. The book calls for therapies that, sadly, I've witnessed within the last few years: holding a child against her will, for example. The book also links emotionally detached mothers to autism. So, I will continue to remind people that such out-dated nonsense should be challenged. Thankfully, I believe most people will recognize Tustin's text is more a historical artifact than valid information on autism. I wasn't familiar with th...

I am unsure of my emotions regarding this research project: SpringerLink - Health Care Analysis, Online First™ HEALTH CARE ANALYSIS DOI: 10.1007/s10728-011-0169-9 Autism as a Natural Human Variation: Reflections on the Claims of the Neurodiversity Movement Pier Jaarsma and Stellan Welin Neurodiversity has remained a controversial concept over the last decade. In its broadest sense the concept of neurodiversity regards atypical neurological development as a normal human difference. The neurodiversity claim contains at least two different aspects. The first aspect is that autism, among other neurological conditions, is first and foremost a natural variation. The other aspect is about conferring rights and in particular value to the neurodiversity condition, demanding recognition and acceptance. Autism can be seen as a natural variation on par with for example homosexuality. The broad version of the neurodiversity claim, covering low-functioning as well as high-functioning autism,...