Neurodiversity

[weatherboi]

Originally Posted by Rockinonahigh

I scored 22..is that bgood or bad?
Rockin

I don't think any result is either good or bad.

[Rockinonahigh]

I always knew I was wired a bit diffrently and have been checked by a doc when I was a grade school kid,he didnt find anything but the mild hyperactivity I deal with.I just do what feels comfy for me to deal with and try not to overwhelmed by the rest of life,it make me a bit of a hermit at times.Im a chef by trade..in dealing with the public taked a big dose of geting hold of my ass and just doing the work as best as I can,I can decompress when its over.
Rockin

[Darth Denkay]

I recently read an article that indicated there is some thought that autism, asperger's syndrome, PDD, and one other (can't think of it right now) may all be collapsed into a single diagnosis of autism. I think I've got the article bookmarked at work. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Right now diagnoses are based on visible symptoms so we differentiate between diagnoses that might physiologically be the same but express themselves differently in individuals based on other neurological factors. I think (when we have a better grasp on neurological causes) we will likely find a lot of similarities between diagnoses than are necessarily apparent now.

On the other hand, there are some differences in how different diagnoses are treated - are these differences significant enough for separate diagnoses to be useful?

FInally, should diagnoses be based on symptoms. Basically three different ways that mental illness could be categorized (physiological basis, treatment, expression). I also don't know what impact changing diagnoses will have on individuals with those diagnoses. What will it be like to be told that now you don't have asperger's, you have autism.

As much as we want to believe that the DSM provides an objective classification system that simply isn't true. Another diagnosis that is also being debated is GID - should it be a diagnosis at all - if so do criteria need to be changed.

I guess this is a bit (a large bit) of a derail. Let me know if anyone is interested in the article.

[violaine]

hallo

i just finished a bunch of work for the committee i belong to [part of the humane society]. the last several days have been kind of trying in the sense of dealing with a totally inconceivable situation involving an animal [will spare details!] - coupled with the mind blowing fact that it was all utterly unnecessary, as i'd already offered intervention.

space was in order as i was trying to decompress - and so i mentioned to a friend what i was doing. a few hours later he contacted me - saying straightaway- "i know you asked for space, and you said you could not be upset by anything, but ......"

what followed from him was indeed terribly anxiety inducing. i could have avoided the call, but not the issue he delivered so, brink of meltdown happened although the actual MD was a few days later.

essentials for me to get back on track are [always] the main three: space, sleep, and schedule. maintaining the latter two help with more of a cush coping skills-wise, and of course, routine = a predictable route with less interference of stressful scenarios. not always realistic, however.

i know what you mean, urs- people often comment that i must only have "a little bit of autism", or that i seem "so normal", et c. i find the words insulting because they are based on assumptions of what is acceptable behaviour in their mind. very telling on their part, and not usually going to get a smile from me- which really doesn't go over famously with the individual another topic all together- whenever i have some rest !

hope you are all having a great new year!

belle
ox

[Ursy]

Originally Posted by violaine

i know what you mean, urs- people often comment that i must only have "a little bit of autism", or that i seem "so normal", et c. i find the words insulting because they are based on assumptions of what is acceptable behaviour in their mind. very telling on their part, and not usually going to get a smile from me- which really doesn't go over famously with the individual another topic all together- whenever i have some rest !

Lovely Belle! xx

It doesn't exactly encourage one to strive to appear "normal" in order to fit in, does it? Though I can, and do... it makes me so tired, I wonder if it's worth maintaining. I mean really, the bottom line is that we do it so that the average person isn't made to feel uncomfortable, right? Not that I resally want to make anyone feel uncomfortable but - why is it always me that has to end up paying for it?

[Lynn]

Wow. I came in here to read and learn. I have always felt that my daughter might be somewhere on the spectrum. She's now 22, pursuing a promising creative writing career, and doing well. I always thought she was a bit eccentric--there was a book I read, "The Out of Sync Child," that fit her perfectly. That book talks about neurological differences in children.

What is especially interesting is that I took that sensitivity test. I scored a 24. There were only one or two I could really say don't apply to me, but that's only because I have learned to overcome some social difficulties to become better in certain situations.

I need to learn more, but first I have to stop procrastinating and get to work!

Thanks for posting this thread!

[Jess]

Hmm.. I scored a 26.. the only thing that didn't apply was the movie question. I tend to like mystery and suspense and often they have a good deal of violence.

I'm not really getting the whole crux of the HSP issue. I will continue reading more about it. I think that yes, sometimes I am hindered in social settings because of feeling "overwhelmed".

How does this play out for other folks who may be HSP? Can it be debilitating? Genuinely interested. Thank you.

[violaine]

[QUOTE=urs;30094]Lovely Belle! xx

It doesn't exactly encourage one to strive to appear "normal" in order to fit in, does it? Though I can, and do... it makes me so tired, I wonder if it's worth maintaining. I mean really, the bottom line is that we do it so that the average person isn't made to feel uncomfortable, right? Not that I resally want to make anyone feel uncomfortable but - why is it always me that has to end up paying for it?

major fatigue- agreed ! plus, i don't feel as if i "have" something "wrong" - i just am... differently wired...

interesting take on " are you neurotypical"? = scroll 3/4 way down page:

http://www.corante.com/brainwaves/ar...urotypical.php

taken from -

http://www.neurodiversity.com/main.html

[violaine]

page 69, Effort & Attention-

keith: "i like the physical contact, not in a definable sense. i just enjoy it. also, what touching offers is the chance to be close without needing to articulate it. surely not everything has to be spoken about and analysed to death. just a held hand or a spoon in the night says a lot..."


http://www.jkp.com/catalogue/book/9781843105404