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mdchan — Autism - Question!
Published: 2013-06-04 19:44:26 +0000 UTC; Views: 1502; Favourites: 33; Downloads: 0
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Got a question to all my watchers out there (and those stumbling upon this piece or my art):Do you have any questions about Autism?
If you do, please ask here!
So, lemme explain a bit, here...in some of my autism artwork, I'd wind up having these awesome conversations with people that leave comments, and some of the things that they bring up or don't know about in terms of autism and Asperger's are things that I'd never give a second thought to, because they're things that I deal with so consistently that I just don't think about them.
I've been trying to put together a book to help explain to people what it's like to have Autism/Asperger's (well, okay, it's a bigger project than a book itself, but that's all I'm saying about it), and basically using the DSM criteria as my "outline" to cover the major "behaviors" that people come across with folks with autism, and include a bit of personal touches on my own experiences with these things and what it's like.
But, since some of these things I just don't think about (the fact that I had to consult the DSM because these behaviors are just natural to me speaks for itself, there), and not every single question and concern is outlined in the DSM criteria, these conversations sort of made me go "hey, I should try to find out more of what people think".
If you have a question, please ask away! There are no stupid questions, here. If you don't feel comfortable asking in the comments, send a Note, even!
Not just questions, but any preconceptions you have about the disorder (particularly those that don't have it that might be wondering something about it).
Not only would I love to discuss it, but it's good research on what topics I really should be explaining to help people understand us better!
I know, a lot of my things don't get comments...kind of annoying, but that's how it works...but please, if you have a moment, and if you have a question (or even think of one later!), ask away.
You won't offend me, I promise; seriously, trying to educate my parents on what it's like to have Autism...not much can compare to that amount of close-mindedness. The only thing that would offend me in this situation are flat out flames or off-topic comments (stuff that honestly isn't really within the guidelines of DA, anyway).
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Comments: 35
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i have one.
wold you agree that Atistic people can be pritty logicol?
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Yes.
That's mostly based off my own experiences, as I love things like logic puzzles (cryptograms and grid puzzles are my favorites), and I'm always trying to solve the mysteries in Detective Conan (and any other mystery novel I pick up; it's a little difficult in Sherlock Holmes since we're often missing pieces of the puzzle due to it being in Watson's POV).
Temple Grandin is a well known name in the world of autism, as she designed a cruelty-free slaughter house for cows (sounds nasty, but it's actually a good thing). That takes both logic and creativity. So, the answer is "yes".
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I know this is four years old but I love logic puzzles too! And I'm Autistic.
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I'm sorry for commenting randomly but i have a question some kids at my school call one of my friends slow but my friends are not autistic but i'm autistic but it still hurts my feelings that some kids call other kids slow why do they do that if some that say that do not know what autism means..?
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I'm not sure I completely understand your question due to the wording, but I'll try to answer as best as I can:
I honestly don't know why bullies behave the way they do. These kids sound like the typical misinformed ones, and ones who just don't understand what it's like to be different; most kids don't.
Once I hit college age and even adulthood, I found that people were much more understanding if I had a panic attack or a breakdown than the kids I went to school with. The only guess I can make is that they're either equal-opportunity bullies (as in, they'll pick on anyone who's different from them), or people like us (and perhaps your friend) are like wounded gazelles to them in the same way that being in the school orchestra is for others; it's a label and something different.
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Ok thank you for telling me it really gave me some good positivity.
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i remember hearing about that.
my dad wold compare Atisom in some aspacts to Spock.
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I've got a question. How can you tell if someone has Asperger's Syndrome?
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That's a tough one.
I suppose it depends on how "bad" the symptoms are, and if the person is trying to hide it or not. Often, society pressures us to be "normal", and even our peers (particularly if they don't know/understand) will make fun of people who display "odd" behaviors. So, to try and avoid that, we try to blend in as best as we can.
Asperger's and Autism effect people in different ways, but there are certain symptoms and behaviors that all of us have in common. One huge behavior is "stimming"; this was thought of originally to be only hand flapping, but there are other ways we calm ourselves down. I used to (and still do) twirl my hair or rub my nose a lot, or crack my fingers, for example. It's a sensory thing. My drawing started as a way of stimming and calming down when I was overwhelmed.
People with Asperger's/Autism are typically very focused on something that interests them, and have trouble seeing a larger picture or expanding their focus to things outside of that one subject. When I was younger, I was obsessed with Care Bears (and cartoons). As I got older, that turned into an obsession with anime (which led to writing fanfiction and drawing fanart). Other people might be obsessed with music, or a video game, or one of the sciences, or math, etc.
Most folks also have trouble expressing how they feel, though since it's difficult to understand all of the rules society places on us, we might say something blunt; lying isn't something we're good at.
Someone with Asperger's also might be a little shy and introverted, an often doesn't like being in front of (or in the middle of) a crowd.
Otherwise, unless you come right out and ask them (or cross-check observations with the DSM criteria), Asperger's is a little hard to outright identify in people. I have some minor verbal communication issues (and retaining verbal commands), but even those are considered "minor". Others with Asperger's might talk just fine (which was the major differentiating factor between Asperger's and Autism).
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I know I have Aspeger's. My dad told me I was diagnosed.
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I have a question! 
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That's a good question (and a tough one to answer). Definitely didn't offend me! No worries. ^^
I don't think it's because we think of ourselves first that autistic people have empathy problems; heck, I ran a fundraiser back when Hurricane Katrina hit the southern US (pretty much on my own) because the rest of the class couldn't be bothered.
I think it's just that, and I'll say it from my perspective since I can't speak for everyone, it's hard for me to put myself in someone else's shoes if I've never experienced what they're going through or talking about. It's like something in my mind just hits a brick wall, or a "does not comprehend" sign pops up in situations where normal people are essentially saying "think how that feels", and I can't, because I've never experienced it. I have a big imagination, but I can't imagine myself as them, going through what they're explaining.
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i have a quistion my name is ally but my pony name is wing heart i was born with autsim but i grew out of it but i help out these kids that have that same thing like me but will atistic kids will they ever get a high school dapoma or are they in a learning section?
(i wasn't trying to be mean by the way)
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I'm not sure I understand exactly what you're asking, so let me know if I missed the point (I'm also a little unclear of what you mean by 'learning section', so I'm guessing it's akin to the 'special education' classification).
Anyways, there's actually a lot of support available for autistic kids/kids on the spectrum when it comes to schooling. In fact, it's better if kids with autism get their diagnosis during school age (unless it's super obvious, to rule out the "just being a kid" factor, around 10-12 years is probably the best time, or at least after the age of 6 if parents/guardians really can't wait).
There are a lot of resources, and kids on the spectrum who grow up with support and help are more likely to develop the necessary skills they need for later on in life.
With that help, it's very possible for them to get a diploma no matter what their class rank is. I have autism, and I have my high school diploma. Granted, I wound up going to a school specifically for kids with mental, physical, and-or learning disabilities for 11th and 12th grade, but the grades and classwork came from my local high school, so my diploma has my normal high school on it (even though my yearbook is from the other place).
Also, and just as a point because it bothers me, it's impossible to grow out of having autism. Autism is one of those things that's there for life, like ADD and other such personality disorders. With therapy and early intervention (and perhaps medication if needed to manage symptoms), it's possible to learn coping mechanisms to get past certain aspects of the disorders, but they never just go away.
I'm not intending to be mean or anything, either. There are actually a lot of cases like that with both autism and ADD/ADHD; it just means that you (and anyone else who "grew out" of those disorders) didn't have a proper diagnosis to begin with. Either that, or it fell under the category of "just being a kid" (which is why I'm against early diagnosis unless there's an obvious learning or debilitating disability present; I heard a story of a toddler who was thought to have autism because he threw a lot of temper tantrums. That's just "being a toddler").
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ok and by the way would you like to be my friend and i hope you don't mind that i'm a mlp fan.
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Sure! And, I don't mind. ^^
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Thank you for answering me! ^^ I understand better now.
Have a good day!
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I've got a friend on dA with Asperger's. Is that the same as a mild case of Autism?
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Asperger's is often called "high functioning autism", so in a sense, I'd like to say "yes"; but now that I've done research on it for the book, I'd actually have to say "sort of".
Asperger's is the same thing as autism (it's got the same DSM criteria), only without any delays in learning (speech, writing, etc).
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You're very honest, thanks for the info.
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No probs! Always happy to! ^^
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when you see a fellow Autistic brother being kicked down or discriminated (in any form). does it concern you like it does me?
furthermore, I studied about famous people in the past with any forms of Autism (or at least suspected). and the seem to be the minds who created modern society, so does the fact that it seems like people think we are incompetent. does this bother you or Kairy?
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I've actually never seen any individual people being bullied; I was always the one being bullied, rather.
It bothers me just to hear about it, and what the media did after the CT shooting was a step towards bullying people with autism, and that really bothered me.
So, yep, it concerns me. One reason I want to do this book is to help people understand what's running through the mind of a person with autism, and then maybe if they understand, there will be less bullying and discrimination.
Second question...
Yep, it does bother me whenever someone thinks of me as incompetant. Some of the greatest minds were autistic or an aspie.
The creator of Pokemon has Asperger's, Einstein had Asperger's...I know that people often laughed at Einstein until his out of the box thinking paid off for society.
Actually, the big problem I encounter is that I'm either compared to those super successful people (which then makes me feel bad because I've pretty much failed at anything I've tried all my life), or called "lazy and unproductive".
I'd like to express both sides of the coin, I suppose; that a lot of the minds behind modern society and entertainment have/had Asperger's, but at the same time, the rest of us with it don't want to be compared to them.
It'd be nice for people to know that just because we're a little slow in math, or something else, it doesn't mean we're stupid or incompetent; that things that are easy for normal people are 10x harder for us, typically.
Night driving, for example; it freaks me out, because of all the lights and sensory issues to take in. When someone comes down on me then, for not wanting to drive at night (which leads to being called synonyms for "incompetent" and "lazy"), I'm just stunned by how little they seem to grasp the difficulty level.
It feels like they're playing Life on Easy mode, while we're playing on Hard mode.
People like Einstein had to work twice as hard as normal people did, even for tasks that most folk would call "simple".
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oh the creator of pokemon's name is Satoshi Tajiri. also Sir Isaac Newton, Leonardo Da Vinci, even Thomas Jefferson are believed to have Autism.
and these are some people who inspire me
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Didn't remember his family name, I just knew the creator of Pokemon has the name of "Satoshi", because that's the name he gave to the protagonist (though, we know him as "Ash" in the dub).
Wanna hear something weird? I'm actually inspired by people that don't have autism (at least, not officially). Charles Schulz, Bill Watterson, and Stephen Merchant are a few of the people that inspire me, and none of them have autism. Not as weird a fact, two of the three are/were comic artists.
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It's a shame many people don't even get many comments. I mean a comment is sometimes vetter then a fav. Anybody can fav but it takes effort to type a comment,right?
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I know, right?
These days, if I can't think of anything to say when I favorite something, I just at least say "nice job". Just SOMETHING to let the person know that you're taking more than two seconds to hit the favorite button.
And that's everywhere, too. Fanfiction.net is like that; I'll check my stats on stories, and find that the new story I posted, in about 4 days, got a little over 100 hits, 4 favorites, and 2 reviews.
That's just sad! That means that about 1 out of every 50 people will take time to review something they've read or seen.
I don't always know how to reply to some comments, especially the ones that are one or two words, but it makes me happy to see them, because then I say to myself "this person actually cares enough to take time out to at least say 'awesome'".
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