Diagnosed with autism

[muppy]

well, I have very personal testimony regarding the autism spectrum and how it relates to both folks who have that diagnosis AND their parents. In this case I am the mom and my 36 year old daughter on the spectrum. Oh the journey I could share. At age 3 she was dignosed with "pervasive developmental disorder" ...The terminology has changed a Lot since 1989 as well as knowledge relating to it. Early intervention is the main focus with organizations like Autism Speaks and Autism Tree foundation whom fundraise money to offer those interventions to those in need.   My daughter is socially awkward around people she dosnt know. She is very high functioning, holds a job, has her license, has friends, lives at home with us and is living her best life. I don't really know what else to write except she was non verbal at age 5 to being a college graduate and very contributing member of society today. we call her goonie, goonette or goonasaur. She has a wicked sense of humor. Eclectic taste in music. Some people claim autism as their super power. HA! Rightfully so.

 

m

[Gugny]

4 hours ago, muppy said:

well, I have very personal testimony regarding the autism spectrum and how it relates to both folks who have that diagnosis AND their parents. In this case I am the mom and my 36 year old daughter on the spectrum. Oh the journey I could share. At age 3 she was dignosed with "pervasive developmental disorder" ...The terminology has changed a Lot since 1989 as well as knowledge relating to it. Early intervention is the main focus with organizations like Autism Speaks and Autism Tree foundation whom fundraise money to offer those interventions to those in need.   My daughter is socially awkward around people she dosnt know. She is very high functioning, holds a job, has her license, has friends, lives at home with us and is living her best life. I don't really know what else to write except she was non verbal at age 5 to being a college graduate and very contributing member of society today. we call her goonie, goonette or goonasaur. She has a wicked sense of humor. Eclectic taste in music. Some people claim autism as their super power. HA! Rightfully so.

 

m

 

This is a great testimonial!  Does your daughter choose to live at home because it's her comfort zone, or would she struggle living on her own?

[muppy]

20 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

This is a great testimonial!  Does your daughter choose to live at home because it's her comfort zone, or would she struggle living on her own?

Both. She would be leaving behind her dog as well as a very comfortable home. It ain't  happening. We do charge her rent but its not what it would cost to live here. San Diego= super high rents.  She went to college in Boston (Berklee-Boston Conservatory) and is a professional cabaret singer as a passion project.

 

Katrina Aguilar Music input on facebook or youtube

[The Dean]

On 9/1/2022 at 1:00 PM, Another Fan said:

Or autism spectrum disorder as it’s now called.  As more time passes I’m a little more comfortable talking about it.

 

Will try and not make this too much a LAMP post but thanks to all here who have listened to me through the years….   you know who you are

 

Ill leave it as while I’m often nostalgic for a lot of stuff in the past, this condition was never really properly understood when I was a kid.  Could have saved me lots of grief but that is what that is.  

 

If you have a child who displays symptoms my advise is still pay whatever money it is to get the best and most thorough evaluations done.  It could go unnoticed otherwise 

 

 

Very sorry to hear that. I figured out later in life I'm a bit dyslexic (which explains a lot from earlier in my life). I also have some ADD/ADHD and (according to an old boss) perhaps a touch of Tourette's syndrome. 😄.  These are spectrums after all, and we may find ourselves on it somewhere, even if it is at the lower end of that spectrum. I'm extremely happy I wasn't diagnosed earlier in life, as I probably would have been medicated and experienced a completely different life. But I do understand (depending on the diagnosis and severity of it) one would want to find out earlier in life.

 

BTW, I just found out today I have throat cancer. I don't think it's anything too serious, but when I get back from vacation I guess I'll have to figure it out. I guess my point it, try not to worry. Worry doesn't help anything, as far as I'm concerned. It only takes. Healthy concern is fine (making sure you are following the doctor's instructions, taking care of yourself, etc)  But worry only make things worse, IMO.

 

When the PA said "try not to worry too much", I basically said to her what I just said. Her response:  "I'm not there yet. I'm trying, but I haven't gotten to that point."  I told her, medical marijuana helps a lot!  

[Another Fan]

9 hours ago, The Dean said:

 

 

Very sorry to hear that. I figured out later in life I'm a bit dyslexic (which explains a lot from earlier in my life). I also have some ADD/ADHD and (according to an old boss) perhaps a touch of Tourette's syndrome. 😄.  These are spectrums after all, and we may find ourselves on it somewhere, even if it is at the lower end of that spectrum. I'm extremely happy I wasn't diagnosed earlier in life, as I probably would have been medicated and experienced a completely different life. But I do understand (depending on the diagnosis and severity of it) one would want to find out earlier in life.

 

BTW, I just found out today I have throat cancer. I don't think it's anything too serious, but when I get back from vacation I guess I'll have to figure it out. I guess my point it, try not to worry. Worry doesn't help anything, as far as I'm concerned. It only takes. Healthy concern is fine (making sure you are following the doctor's instructions, taking care of yourself, etc)  But worry only make things worse, IMO.

 

When the PA said "try not to worry too much", I basically said to her what I just said. Her response:  "I'm not there yet. I'm trying, but I haven't gotten to that point."  I told her, medical marijuana helps a lot!  

all the best 

[The Dean]

12 hours ago, Another Fan said:

all the best 

 

 

Thanks. Back at ya.

[ExiledInIllinois]

3 hours ago, The Dean said:

 

 

Thanks. Back at ya.

Take care... Get well!  Our neighbor had it (throat cancer) and responded well to treatment.  

[muppy]

11 hours ago, The Dean said:

 

 

Thanks. Back at ya.

senor Dean I will include you in my prayers for complete healing! This too shall pass. Strength and peace hermano. GO BILLS!~!

[boater]

You can still be highly functional. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is believed to be on the spectrum. Google it.

 

[Chef Jim]

My nephew has severe autism and has not spoken a word in his life.  He is now 42.  My sister and brother in law are saints. 

[djp14150]

On 9/1/2022 at 5:27 PM, Another Fan said:

 

Short answer is communication and anxiety issues have always plagued me.  I can’t go backwards but at least I have an understanding of why some of that happened.  And things I know to work on going forward.  Ex: interpersonal skills 

If you got officially diagnosed was it recently?   
 

Just that the Asperger’s diagnosis went away.  It’s just now called autism spectrum disorder where it’s all lumped into one diagnosis 

I have a mild form of aspergers.

 

i see a distinction between it and autism. Aspergers didn’t go away. It’s just bern down graded.  Similar to asthma or food being specific types of lung diseases group.

 

i have never been formerly diagnosed.

 

a cousin of mine growing up on my dads side had classic text book autism.  She was the same age as my sister.  Her grandma and out grandma were sisters.  I saw it first hand when seeing her a few times a year at family stuff. She was later diagnosed with schizophrenia on top of it.  Only her older sister s seems be able to control her so she has been her caregiver/ watching over her.

 

but on my mothers side of the family there is I strong feel is some aspergers lite type of gene.

 

thr gene is harder to tell in women because of socially accepted norms.  In the family tree my mom was the oldest.

 

mom *

—me*

—brother—son 1* son 2

—sister

sister 1

–son 1

–son 2*

—son 3

sister 2*

—daughter

sister 3

—son 1 *

—son 2

brother*

—daughter

—son 1

—son 2*

* likely have the gene.

 

cousins have children but I don’t see them enough to know if it’s passed to them.

 

my mom and her sister were high IQ types but more loners/ to themselves where they had a few close friends in their lives.  My aunt worked as a paralegal but likely would be a lawyer today like her daughter did.  My mom was stay at home till we were all full time school then worked secondary jobs.  She started in college which is where she met my dad.  She woukd have been a career woman today.

 

One cousin of mine is an MD and the other is a pharmacist.  Other members of the family are smart but from a pure IQ level the gene skews higher.  I was hurt by having meningitis/ seizures as a child ehich likely hurt my brain development in areas from being clearly higher IQ than my brother.  We are about the same.  

 

i realized this as an adult about 15-20 years ago when I found out I had a condition of prosopagnosia. Found an online group. In sharing stories I learned more about aspergers. Others sharing their stories I realized I had some similarities. There is also high correlation between having aspie/ austism and also likely having prosopagnosia.

 

my brother is a university professor who has done research on test book aspie patients. I mentioned to him I think I have some form of it and he realized after looking at me clinically.  My neurologist also saw it as well.

 

my form isn’t obvious.

 

this gene I think also Carrie’s a social awkwardness as well.  It’s always difgicult for me when it comes to relationships and trying to read people non verbally.  Online dating sites have helped me considerably because it got me past those initial steps and just focus on getting to know the person.  
 

 

Pre OLD I had female friends and coukd talk to them.  The problem always was asking them out on a date.  It was even worse for random meetings.  If something happened that naturally started a conversation then I was good. I r had better luck in situations of slowly getting to know them where you might see this person once a week in a college class and gradually talked more after class.

 

while thru work I would never date an immediate coworkers who I worked with regularly.  I would date someone I might have met thru a special project from an office I wouldn't work with or thru shared lunch room or building lunch stops.

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

On 9/6/2022 at 3:29 PM, Chef Jim said:

My nephew has severe autism and has not spoken a word in his life.  He is now 42.  My sister and brother in law are saints. 

its not easy with kids especially in school 

[Chef Jim]

16 minutes ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

its not easy with kids especially in school 

He had lived on his own for several years now. It’s an assisted living community and my sister and BIL are now retired so they spend a lot of time taking care of him. 

[muppy]

On 9/6/2022 at 12:19 PM, boater said:

You can still be highly functional. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is believed to be on the spectrum. Google it.

 

many people would be surprised to know of famous people on the autistic spectrum . Just off the top of my head" Albert Einstein, Susan Boyle, Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Neil Young, Darryl Hannah. 

[Another Fan]

As I said in the OP kids or really anyone having knowledge of this stuff is a good thing.  Despite imo still very sadly the stigma it may carry.

 

Like today at work I got talked too about how to handle a social situation at work better.  Prior that could even have got me in crisis mode where I’ve punched myself repeatedly in the chest at times among other issues like that.  

 

But with the knowledge it’s something for me to size up and see what I could do better.  And be heard as well to express my point of view

52 minutes ago, muppy said:

many people would be surprised to know of famous people on the autistic spectrum . Just off the top of my head" Albert Einstein, Susan Boyle, Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Neil Young, Darryl Hannah. 

1st athlete I am aware of to be open about his experiences

 

https://www.fox26houston.com/news/former-nfl-player-joe-barksdale-autism-diagnosis.amp

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

@Simon

 

Please take a moment to read this thread and then think how one can work with people who’s brains are wired differently 

 

 

its called a puzzle for a reason 

 

 

Even police undergo training 

 

https://www.autismspeaks.org/information-law-enforcement

 

We are not asking for special treatment 

 

Just an understanding 

Edited September 8, 2022 by SlimShady'sSpaceForce

[Another Fan]

28 minutes ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

@Simon

 

Please take a moment to read this thread and then think how one can work with people who’s brains are wired differently 

 

 

its called a puzzle for a reason 

 

 

Even police undergo training 

 

https://www.autismspeaks.org/information-law-enforcement

 

We are not asking for special treatment 

 

Just an understanding 

https://en.uncyclopedia.co/wiki/Neurotypical_syndrome

 

Everyone should accommodate to us lol 

[Buffalo716]

2 hours ago, muppy said:

many people would be surprised to know of famous people on the autistic spectrum . Just off the top of my head" Albert Einstein, Susan Boyle, Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Neil Young, Darryl Hannah. 

I’d be hard to classify Einstein when he’s never been tested

 

It’s a hypothesis 

Edited September 8, 2022 by Buffalo716

[_Underscore_]

I normally just lurk, so forgive my interruption…

 

My son is now 27, and completely non-verbal.  The way I describe it to people is being a caregiver to the world’s largest (~300lb, 6’-1”) overtired two-year old.  Although there is no malice, there is a lot of violence (mostly self-injurious, but not exclusively) and destruction of property.  I’d be happy to expand on our story if there is any interest but…

 

My point in interjecting is to say that the wife and I often feel blessed that he lacks the mentally capacity to have awareness of the level of his disability – and sincerely feel for the parents of higher-functioning autistic kids.  They have the tougher road.  Because my son is low functioning, we can provide him with happiness (in his own fashion).  There is some solace in that we can at least do this.

 

We know a number (!) of suicides in higher functioning autistic people.  There is a social expectation that a high-functioning person can “focus” their way to “normal” (whatever “normal” means).  It’s like trying to “focus” their way out of color-blindness – and it not only tends to fail, but creates a lot of unhappiness along the way.

 

Thank you to the OP for posting this very important topic.  Diagnosis is key, but it’s just the beginning.  If anyone out there is on the spectrum or has a child that is – please avail yourself of whatever help/support you can get through family and support services.  It’s a long race.  Get intervention as early as possible and be active in demanding all the social support you can get.

 

[Simon]

43 minutes ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

@Simon

 

Please take a moment to read this thread and then think how one can work with people who’s brains are wired differently 

 

So I gave you one warning point for the only time in five years when you dragged a bunch of Trump garbage into an irrelevant thread, and now I don't understand autism?

Maybe I work with special needs kids every single day.

Maybe I'm even further along the spectrum than you.

You have no idea so I'd suggest you keep that insulting nonsense to yourself from now on.

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

2 hours ago, Simon said:

 

So I gave you one warning point for the only time in five years when you dragged a bunch of Trump garbage into an irrelevant thread, and now I don't understand autism?

Maybe I work with special needs kids every single day.

Maybe I'm even further along the spectrum than you.

You have no idea so I'd suggest you keep that insulting nonsense to yourself from now on.

what are you thinking of?

who did insult and how again?

 

I mentioned Donald Trump once on OTW,

BECAUSE I made a joke and was called a racist. 

 

so I mentioned a person who was racist.  
did I call someone a chronic masturbator? 

 

[djp14150]

On 9/2/2022 at 8:59 AM, Draconator said:

My wife owns a literacy center that specializes in teaching kids and adults that fit the Dyslexia profile how to read. I just read her this and she said that Autism is the opposite of Dyslexia. According to the book "The Dyslexia Advantage", a group of cells called the "minicolums" which are a vertical arrangement of cells from the cortex of the brain, In dyslexic people, the minicolums are spaced widely apart. In Autistic people, they are spaced closely together.  

 

For years it was believed that you couldn't be both Autistic and Dyslexic at the same time. It was only recently that that has been proved to be false. 

i have aspergers.  I also have some mild form of dyslexia where I can easily switch orders of letters when I’m typing.  I also noticed a tendency fir my brain to switch words among common spelled one.

 

about 20 years ago I had brain surgery removing most of my left temporal lobe and left amygdoka and hippocampus to treat a form of epilepsy.  I noticed this became more common post surgery of the word changes. And example might be something like symptom and a different word like sympathy.

 

my brother is a university professor in cognitive psychology. He works in areas of brain mapping and memory recall. I’m skeptical of that idea of special brain cells being close vs far apart.  He’s done work in areas on the causes of prosopagnosia, synesthesia, rapid response recall/ recognition.

 

prior to my brain surgery I had a specialized pre screening surgery test. It’s called a Wanda test.  It simulates brain strokes in one hr,i sphere in your brain.

 

in my brain there were expected issue on my left side.  They send a mini catheter up my jugular from my groin area to one side and inject a chemical on one side of my brain that gives off warm heat. Feeling dryer hot air inside your head.  
 

during injection a Dr behind me ( I’m on my back) asked me to name basic objects.  I can hear him. I mentally recognize them but I can’t recall the words no can I speak the words.  They switch sides and repeat shutting down the bad side and I have no problems with this.  The objects were basic easily recognizable like a pencil, a cup, a ball.

 

it gave me a different perspective on those in vegetative states.

 

before and after I had a neuropsych test done on various memory tests. The first one took 5 hrs. The post surgery took less because they only focused on things that are usually tied to the left side where surgery occurred.  I had very littke differences before and after.

 

the long term differences I experience now are

 

1. I was poor memorizing long lists, I am probably worse now.

2. my memory recall is slower where it takes me longer to pull things out of memory. My brain computer is a celeron processor instead of dual-core.  Before surgery I could have been a jeopardy contestant and might win a few games with the luck of questions because I do have weak areas…today if I’m watching I can’t pull it out as fast as I used to.

3. I’ve notice more dyslexic type of behavior with switching letters in words or replacing parts ( ends) of words

4. I can’t open up my mouth as much as I could pre surgery.

 

 

short term affects all right after surgery….

 

I had surgery on a Friday. I was out all Saturday. Awake on Sunday.  I could talk fine. I could not write. I was like a kid writing the first time where I could not write in tight spaces like is typical on lines spaces. I knew letter shapes but coukdnt write them.

2. I got echos in my ear on surgery side

3. I lost saw of my mouth opening. Surgery cuts the muscle of your jaw.  I couldn’t open it much. I was limited to McDonald’s/ Burger King size basic burgers. I coukd not oprn my mouth enough to eat a sub sandwich or a Big Mac.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[muppy]

On 9/8/2022 at 8:59 AM, muppy said:

many people would be surprised to know of famous people on the autistic spectrum . Just off the top of my head" Albert Einstein, Susan Boyle, Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Neil Young, Darryl Hannah. 

I did some research and found this. I thought it was interesting. I discerned that without knowing their childhoods a 100% autism spectrum disorder dignosis isn't possible. But there IS a checklist that has proven correct. And that be a genius or brilliance in an area of singular focus. It could be science, math, music, etc etc etc For Neil Young it was music AND model trains of all things.

 

Quote

Obsessive detail to certain topics, trouble communicating clearly, and poor social skills.

Very broadly speaking, that sounds like many scientists I’ve encountered over the years.

But a British psychiatrist is now saying that some of the best-known scientists of all time had Asperger syndrome, a high-functioning disorder on the autism spectrum, which is characterized by similar symptoms.

According to Michael Fitzgerald, professor of psychiatry at Trinity College in Dublin, a long list of ‘geniuses’ ― including Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, George Orwell, H. G. Wells Ludwig Wittgenstein, Beethoven, Mozart, Hans Christian Andersen and Immanuel Kant ― all had Asperger syndrome.

 

Edited September 9, 2022 by muppy

[Gugny]

On 9/8/2022 at 4:02 PM, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

did I call someone a chronic masturbator? 

 

 

[BringBackFergy]

On 9/9/2022 at 4:59 PM, muppy said:

I did some research and found this. I thought it was interesting. I discerned that without knowing their childhoods a 100% autism spectrum disorder dignosis isn't possible. But there IS a checklist that has proven correct. And that be a genius or brilliance in an area of singular focus. It could be science, math, music, etc etc etc For Neil Young it was music AND model trains of all things.

 

 

Very interesting.