Autism

[AlittleMayhem]

I know misdiagnosis happens, I was just asking @mimitchi33 if that was the case with them.

Speaking of diagnosis, in my case it kinda took a while, at least that was what my mum told me. They made a first one when I was four so from then I got all the support me and my family needed but it wasn't officially confirmed until I was eleven.

 

[Slackbot]

I wasn't trying to prove to you that misdiagnoses happen. Just sharing my nephew's story.

 

[AlittleMayhem]

Sorry, it just came off as such with yours and theSHE124 stories.

 

[Drtooth]

Steve Urkel? Not...really? At least, I don't see it. If people think he is, fine I guess but I wouldn't personally think so. Ironically, some the characters I headcanon as autistic are usually tough types, like Tauriel or all of the GotG.

In a way, it does bug me that the nerd type characters are the one people always claim to be autistic but, like I stated, I have headcanons for nerds too. I guess in a perfect world, more people would have autistic headcanons for any character troupe.

Yeah. Steve Urkel and Screech. And they took them both to be derogatory examples of such. There was even some image macro on Cracked that held that belief. I really don't see it. Social awkwardness does not an autism diagnosis make.

While I don't actually have autism, I'm kinda offended by the Autism Speaks PSA campaign featuring Tommy Hillfinger and that race car driver. You know the ones "the Odds of a [such and such]" and it's all about them with "oh yeah, relative has autism" added to the end for the statistic's sake.

REALLY?!?! That's how you want to spread the message? Egoboosts for famous people? You're not going to talk about how much they love their autistic relatives, what it's like to have one, or anything remotely related to what it is? You're just getting by how wonderful their careers are just to turn it into a statistic?

 

[KremlingWhatnot]

I have Autism too, well, it's high functioning Autism anyways, I've had since I was 2 years old.

 

[dwayne1115]

I was wondering if Sesame was going to ever deal with the issue of autism, and as it turns out they are.

 

[theSHE124]

Aw, that's such a lovely & greatly-informative clip! Even reminds me of myself, i.e., from that one time...

Mom never understood why I treated Topaz, my favorite plushie, like a real friend & person. She was even a little worried about my sanity as an autistic kid. But back in January 2009 (or was it 2010?), she took me to see Steve Whitmire at the CPA discussing his experience in the Muppets. He mentioned one complex relationship of puppetry concerning objective/subjective/interaction, which Mom actually paid attention to.

Because during lunch break, she admitted to me, "All this time, I was wrong about you! I have told you before that Topaz wasn't real, but as you dressed him up and make him talk to us, you were really doing puppetry in a way."

Doing puppeteering wasn't initially a job I had in mind, but I am proud that I'm good at it without even trying! I never see autism as a drawback (well, maybe some slight snags. I can't stand spices that burn my tongue!) yet rather a reality in a different point of view. Plus puppet-arts like Muppets are one way to interact. Take it from me: don't hesitate to show how apple pies are made!

 

[Flaky Pudding]

I have NLD, which is similar to Aspergers. I've had it (as well as ADHD) ever since I was little.

 

[VonCount]

@Slackbot just curious and you don't have to answer if you don't want to but in your nephew's case was it just a speech delay and not making eye contact or did he have any other behaviors that would lend to an autism diagnosis?
For example my son was just diagnosed as on the spectrum and he has similar behaviors but he also lines up like items and spins in place, I think if it was just a speech delay they might have classified it as that, but since he has repetitive behaviors they erred on the side of caution and have him a diagnosis that qualified him for treatment, speech and occupational therapy etc.
The geneticist we saw said he often sees kids outgrow their diagnosis because they like to err on the site of caution to make sure the child gets early treatment.

 

[Slackbot]

My nephew wasn't talking and paid no attention whatsoever to anyone but his mother. No repetitive motions, lining up objects, or any of the other classic symptoms of autism; he simply acted like an overgrown infant to whom nobody but Mommy was worth noticing. It was a pretty obvious that the person who examined him didn't know much about autism.

Interestingly, as a kid I exhibited a lot of those classic symptoms. Spinning, sorting and lining things up (I had a seashell collection that would keep me occupied for hours), and only as an adult have I trained myself to look at people's faces when I talk with them. However, I was also talking and reading at age 2. I guess the moral of the story (in both cases) is that you gotta look at the big picture.

I'm glad your son is getting early treatment! I hope it helps him mitigate or overcome his issues, the way it did for my nephew.