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Proposed autism definition changes

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Stitch, Jan 20, 2012.

  1. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    It's easy to point to ADHD and say autism spectrum disorders are similar. If you haven't been around even a high-functioning child, it's hard to see what could be different. For one of my sons, he is different. It's something my wife and I have to accept. He won't be "normal" as the world sees it, but that's OK. One of the benefits of getting a diagnosis is you can acquire tools to help your child navigate the world instead of just giving up hope.
     
  2. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I remember hearing or reading somewhere that Olbermann has it.
     
  3. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    The protagonist in "The Big Short" was a pretty severe case, which worked tremendously to his advantage. Michael Lewis noted that the guy's obsessive nature is what led him to be probably the only person in the world who actually read the documents spelling out what kind of mortgages the banks were securitizing. Not until a psychologist evaluated his child did he realize that he himself had it.
     
  4. DanielSimpsonDay

    DanielSimpsonDay Well-Known Member

    As grateful as I am for all of the aid and services my son has received and from which he has subsequently benefited, I lacked the cunning and pragmatism required for such an effort. The last thing I wanted to hear was that he was autistic to any degree.
     
  5. doodah

    doodah Guest

    There's nothing wrong with people who have cases of this. People should stop having to feel ostracized because they're different. Living with it can be tough, but they should get a fair opportunity to succeed and maybe get a few extra breaks because of it.
     
  6. BrianGriffin

    BrianGriffin Active Member

    I think the way Mizzou looks at it is, forgive the expression, ass-backwards. You are giving it the "in the old days, we'd just call the kid 'weird.' " treatment. Well, yes maybe you would have, but now we have a better understanding of why the kid is "weird."

    Like others have said, if I had quirks, or if my kid has quirks, I'd much rather think it's because of personality quirks rather than some condition that has a name and he needs to be medicated for. I don't think the motivation for needing your kid labeled as being diseased is nearly as high as you think.
     
  7. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    How does your opinion address the original premise of the thread? What is your opinion on the proposed changes?
     
  8. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    I think your rhetoric is over the top, Brian. That view is not just a voice in the wilderness or someone who is pulling the blinds shut on progress. The reason this is a big controversy now is that a significant enough portion of the psychology community looked at it and said "you know what, maybe we have gone overboard with this." It is not mandated by the insurance industry or the public schools, it is a debate within the profession itself.
     
  9. Kato

    Kato Well-Known Member

    Mizzou, I appreciate that and I wasn't trying to be argumentative or over-emotional (although that does happen sometimes with this particular subject) with you. I think you and other raised some good questions. I was just trying to answer those based on my family's situation.

    Coincidently, my kid had an epic homework-related meltdown between my last post and this one. It was a doozy. He took a shower (his calm-down technique) and all is well now. I guess I'm just glad he saves most of those blowups for home while holding it together at school all day, but -- whew -- I am spent.
     
  10. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    Interesting subject the NY Times went with in using a photo, of a woman with Aspeger's. I haven't known any females who hav been diagnosed with an ASD.
     
  11. Smash Williams

    Smash Williams Well-Known Member

    Yes you do, at least on this message board. I was diagnosed as PDD-NOS when I was 17, and that was revised to Apserger's in college.

    Honestly, I'm not all that against the diagnostic changes because I think the current grouping is overly broad. Some of the kids who will go off this diagnosis will get picked up by others (particularly Sensory Processing Disorder, which is getting a DSM mention though not a full entry yet).

    Edited because acronyms are not my friend today.
     
  12. doodah

    doodah Guest

    I have a mild form of the disorder as well.
     
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