Because you are very special misunderstood people. People generally struggle to understand those that are different.

Very interesting, but in your spectrum image you are concentrating only those people who have been diagnosed with Autism by clinicians in the medical profession and these people work with how much Autism effects your every day functioning. I am more inclined to see Autistic traits in far more people who do not meet the requirements of the medical profession.

Most of the population of the world score in the middle of the Autistic spectrum. If you use a scale of 0-50, 0 meaning no Autistic traits and 50 meaning High Autistic traits, all the average people sit at around 25 on the Autistic scale. People with Autistic diagnosis sit above 30 on the scale. So the average person is not that far away on the continuum of the Autistic scale.

Some people suffer depression because they have Autistic traits yet do not meet the requirements of the medical assessment model and will not be diagnosed with Autism. Some children get bullied at school because they have a high number of Autistic traits yet again do not meet the requirements of the medical model. Which is about clinical judgements rather than science.


Read and watch videos by Uta Frith, Developmental psychologist, she is the master of Autism

 

Cool! Yeah there are a lot who are middle range. That's why they shouldn't be in boxes.

 

The job market of the future will be one that will be, not only tech based, for the most part, but will contain many roles and industries that may require many sensory oriented abilities and great attention to detail. Some of the jobs that may increase in the future will be:
3D Modeller
AI Developer
Engineer, particularly robotics engineers
graphics artists,
and similar vocations.
the job market may become increasingly home based and isolated.

Firstly, thank you for writing such an in-depth post on the issue. It was very interesting to read!
One thing I do find when careers are presented which are 'more suited' to people with ASD is that they usually require a lot of qualifications which can be difficult to attain. I just wanted to point out that there are plenty of entry-level jobs people with ASD do and where their traits are appreciated, including even things like data entry (due to higher levels of attention to detail).

Some people suffer depression because they have Autistic traits yet do not meet the requirements of the medical assessment model and will not be diagnosed with Autism. Some children get bullied at school because they have a high number of Autistic traits yet again do not meet the requirements of the medical model. Which is about clinical judgements rather than science.

Well, the main criteria for someone to be diagnosed with ASD (at least in the UK) is perpetuated difficulty with social situations, sensory over/under-sensitivity and intense interests, which generally need to all be present to a degree for a diagnosis. People may have sensory sensitivity from other conditions, such as sensory processing disorder, for example, or social difficulty from an anxiety disorder like social anxiety, but the combination of these traits is generally what indicates ASD. These also need to have been present (and noticeable) from a very young age, which is why for a diagnosis it helps to have a parent, other relative, or very close friend attend.
Basically, I'm trying to say that yes, people who do have ASD get missed by the system at times, but also people who don't have it get diagnosed with it rather than other conditions due to misunderstandings (if that's the right word) about what it is. I was given training in my last job on ASD with it being described by people who have the condition as being 'very conscious' in social situations - so having a lack of social instinct (having to think about what body language might mean, what is the speaker's tone of voice like, what is the context etc. on top of taking in what the person is actually saying) which ends up generally causing a feeling of being overwhelmed and exhausted from the social interaction (and at times leading to meltdowns, which may be missed as such due to the stereotype of them always being explosions of anger, rather than the fact they can be anything from rocking, shouting, moving around a lot to even just crying).
I also like Temple Grandin's work on ASD (here's one of her books) which shows an inside view of the condition.

 

Firstly, thank you for writing such an in-depth post on the issue. It was very interesting to read!
One thing I do find when careers are presented which are 'more suited' to people with ASD is that they usually require a lot of qualifications which can be difficult to attain. I just wanted to point out that there are plenty of entry-level jobs people with ASD do and where their traits are appreciated, including even things like data entry (due to higher levels of attention to detail).


Well, the main criteria for someone to be diagnosed with ASD (at least in the UK) is perpetuated difficulty with social situations, sensory over/under-sensitivity and intense interests, which generally need to all be present to a degree for a diagnosis. People may have sensory sensitivity from other conditions, such as sensory processing disorder, for example, or social difficulty from an anxiety disorder like social anxiety, but the combination of these traits is generally what indicates ASD. These also need to have been present (and noticeable) from a very young age, which is why for a diagnosis it helps to have a parent, other relative, or very close friend attend.
Basically, I'm trying to say that yes, people who do have ASD get missed by the system at times, but also people who don't have it get diagnosed with it rather than other conditions due to misunderstandings (if that's the right word) about what it is. I was given training in my last job on ASD with it being described by people who have the condition as being 'very conscious' in social situations - so having a lack of social instinct (having to think about what body language might mean, what is the speaker's tone of voice like, what is the context etc. on top of taking in what the person is actually saying) which ends up generally causing a feeling of being overwhelmed and exhausted from the social interaction (and at times leading to meltdowns, which may be missed as such due to the stereotype of them always being explosions of anger, rather than the fact they can be anything from rocking, shouting, moving around a lot to even just crying).
I also like Temple Grandin's work on ASD (here's one of her books) which shows an inside view of the condition.

I like reading the works of Grandin.

 

Have also said that to myself. Many famous people back in the days who is suspected is like Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla, and Mozart etc.
But to ask on the topic, no clue maybe its easier to missunderstood people with asperger who arent in the norm, than to understand
them. They are often really nice people, based on experience.
Ignorance spreading myhts, stupid and just weird stereotypes etc.

 

However, I'm not 100% convinced that all nonverbals and "low functioning" necessarily have a low IQ. If you do research on Autism and abstract reasoning tests, many even nonverbal autistics score well.

I agree.

My mom works in preschool special education, and her organization considered ASD mainly a communication disorder (I would prefer "difference", rather than "disorder"...) Regardess - I think "communication disorder" is a better way of approaching it than other terms, like developmental delay. ASD can obviously span many areas of difficulty, delay, and just difference, but for laypeople unfamiliar with the details, calling it a communication disorder seems to yield more accurate assumptions - that the individual's thoughts and intellect are often not transmitted to others successfully, be that through a casual conversation or via testing.

Anyway, my husband is on the spectrum. He mostly has sensory sensitivity traits, but exhibits other common traits, as well. It took us a while to learn how to navigate each other, but that's true for any two people, of course. He's incredibly intelligent and I love his honesty. I also love his independence. While I love people in general, he's more trustworthy and straightforward than the vast majority of people I meet. One of my favorite things about him is that there are no mindgames. If he wants to do something or likes something, he will tell me as much. If he doesn't, he will tell me, too. So when he tells me he loves me - I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is real.

 

Thank you for writing this! I have Asperger’s, well, I know (and others close to me, do) I’m working on getting diagnosed, however I’m spinning at where to even start treatment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Thank you for writing this! I have Asperger’s, well, I know (and others close to me, do) I’m working on getting diagnosed, however I’m spinning at where to even start treatment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry, but this is bothering me. It would be "I suspect I have Asperger's", not "I have Asperger's" since you have never been diagnosed with it yet. So in turn, with no professional diagnosis of you, a better way of phrasing it is that you suspect you have it, not that you have since you cannot confirm it yet.

 

I would also prefer to use the word misunderstood rather than undervalued. People are not usually taught to understand aspergers or autism and very often don't know how to deal with what they don't understand. Since the occurrence individuals with aspergers/autism is increasing, perhaps due to people marrying later in life, I am hopeful that there will be much better understanding of this condition, in the not too distant future. The average underemployment rate of a person with aspergers is 85%, compared to a neurotypical average underemployment rate of 13%. In the following article, I believe Grace means underemployment, rather than unemployment. Underemployment includes those who are: unemployed, in part time work, casual work or who are studying.

Is it Time for Asperger’s in the Workplace? | Diversity Journal

 

Individuals with aspergers are essential for a society to progress.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2015/04/03/why-shades-of-aspergers-syndrome-are-the-secret-to-building-a-great-tech-company/

 

Although I was recently tested for ASD and the speculative diagnosis I had first received in a different psychiatric facility (without comprehensive testing) wasn't retained, I spent more than half a year with quite a number of people on the spectrum with average to high IQs, and it was the best period I experienced during the 3+ years I've spent in psychiatry. Although there are exceptions, I often find it more agreeable to relate with people on the spectrum than with neurotypical people. Recently I also met someone online who's on the spectrum, fell in love with her, and am now in a long distance relationship with someone who I consider to be a pearl of a person, highly capable in quite a number of areas, very creative, empathic and a joy to speak with.

There is an enormous variety among people who fit the label of ASD, and each person brings a specific potential to our world that might not have been there, if they didn't have the specific traits that made the diagnosis of ASD possible. Whether ASD, especially forms that are high-functioning, is to be considered mostly a limitation or mostly a superpower, all depends on the situation, the specific context, the purpose towards which one is striving, the values to be upheld, the available means and methods to try to achieve something and the group of people involved and their relational capacity to include "otherness". In our current society, in many situations, it will often be experienced as a limitation, but this is always a limitation-in-relation-and-in-context, that could turn out to be something of an entirely different nature in a different relational web and a different context, let alone a different society. In a society that we could consider truly humane and intelligent, there would be communities that made possible for every single variety of being human (and non-human) to shine and contribute in an authentic and fulfilling way to the greater good of all lifeforms, and to be valued and loved for being truly themselves.

 

Did you miss the part where I said I was evaluated? I understand you think you're not being rude, and you think you're being helpful, but you're being argumentative at everything I say and telling me how I should act, and be. I am allowed to be who I am, as emotional as I am. I am allowed to be human and be triggered. You are nitpicking my emotions, my communication issues, everything you can find.....which is exactly the problem with the Autistic Community being undervalued. You actually, made a wonderful point, so thank you. I appreciate you trying to protect me from trolls, however, in trying to do that, you ended up being one.

I don't need yours' or anyone elses' permission to be who I am. I don't need to change who I am to adapt to society that refuses to understand those on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder. I have enough going on, to constantly worry about if I said the right thing, I'm learning communication skills for the first time at 32 years old. Along with ASD, my nervous system has been in chaos for 32 years. I deserve a break. If the person I am speaking to wants to understand, they will. Otherwise, nothing I say will convince you, or anyone else and I can't keep worrying about that in life. My family knows, my doctors know, my psychiatrist knows, and my counselor knows, as well as others in the profession. I don't need to convince you, I am just trying to educate anyone that comes across this, that is the only reason I still am even responding to you.


I feel like you're not even reading what I say or trying to understand,I feel you're not hearing me, so there really isn't much I can do. You do not know my symptoms, you do not know my life, you do not know my habits, my struggles, my idosecrecies. I tried to just inform you and I felt you were doing the exact thing those of us in the Autism Spectrum Community are fighting against. I have been attempting to socialize in an "acceptable way" my entire life, and hiding my emotions, hiding my struggles because I was so embarrassed because they were simple concepts and when people explained them to me, I understood but I was so embarrassed that I didn't understand, I stopped asking "stupid" questions. My generation was 10 years before Autism was really known about. At that time it was "autism" or "idiot savant" no in between, no spectrums so as a child it went missed by everyone because I was high functioning.

No, people need to stop being so judgemental and get to know us, ask us questions and not assume because we are socially awkward that we are "retarded" or "slow" or "manipulating" or "seeking attention" or just "stupid" "worthless" "burden" etc. I head these things my entire life and was underestimated in the wrong areas, and over estimated in the wrong areas, so I could never ever fit in.


I can give you some actual links, mommypotamus puts it in easy to understand words, because I knew others would be reading as well and I wanted to help them understand so they can have some insight into their health, so I posted that link. Not just for you, for anyone.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4241316/
https://www.mthfrsupport.com.au/link-between-mthfr-and-autism/
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/gri/2014/698574/abs/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10803-010-1120-x
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sravya_Thumoju/publication/265644222_Evaluation_of_C677T_Polymorphism_of_the_Methylenetetrahydrofolate_Reductase_MTHFR_Gene_in_various_Neurological_Disorders/links/587491fc08aebf17d3b1fcde/Evaluation-of-C677T-Polymorphism-of-the-Methylenetetrahydrofolate-Reductase-MTHFR-Gene-in-various-Neurological-Disorders.pdf
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11011-016-9815-0
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aur.1300




Have a nice day. :heart:

 

Did you miss the part where I said I was evaluated? I understand you think you're not being rude, and you think you're being helpful, but you're being argumentative at everything I say and telling me how I should act, and be. I am allowed to be who I am, as emotional as I am. I am allowed to be human and be triggered. You are nitpicking my emotions, my communication issues, everything you can find.....which is exactly the problem with the Autistic Community being undervalued. You actually, made a wonderful point, so thank you. I appreciate you trying to protect me from trolls, however, in trying to do that, you ended up being one.

First off, never any of my posts gave I told you how to act or think. Secondly, you are also being argumentative too, and my posts are in response to that. Thirdly, I am not nitpicking your emotions. Fourthly, I, by definition, am not trolling:

troll2
trōl/Submit
verb
gerund or present participle: trolling
1.
informal
make a deliberately offensive or provocative online post with the aim of upsetting someone or eliciting an angry response from them.
"if people are obviously trolling then I'll delete your posts and do my best to ban you"

I don't need yours' or anyone elses' permission to be who I am. I don't need to change who I am to adapt to society that refuses to understand those on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder. I have enough going on, to constantly worry about if I said the right thing, I'm learning communication skills for the first time at 32 years old. Along with ASD, my nervous system has been in chaos for 32 years. I deserve a break. If the person I am speaking to wants to understand, they will. Otherwise, nothing I say will convince you, or anyone else and I can't keep worrying about that in life. My family knows, my doctors know, my psychiatrist knows, and my counselor knows, as well as others in the profession. I don't need to convince you, I am just trying to educate anyone that comes across this, that is the only reason I still am even responding to you.

Most if your responses to me are based on emotional rebuttals, so I would say otherwise in the educating part.

I feel like you're not even reading what I say or trying to understand,I feel you're not hearing me, so there really isn't much I can do. You do not know my symptoms, you do not know my life, you do not know my habits, my struggles, my idosecrecies. I tried to just inform you and I felt you were doing the exact thing those of us in the Autism Spectrum Community are fighting against. I have been attempting to socialize in an "acceptable way" my entire life, and hiding my emotions, hiding my struggles because I was so embarrassed because they were simple concepts and when people explained them to me, I understood but I was so embarrassed that I didn't understand, I stopped asking "stupid" questions. My generation was 10 years before Autism was really known about. At that time it was "autism" or "idiot savant" no in between, no spectrums so as a child it went missed by everyone because I was high functioning.

You have barely bothered to put in any effort into reading my posts properly, so this paragraph along with others, is barely applicable to my posts.

No, people need to stop being so judgemental and get to know us, ask us questions and not assume because we are socially awkward that we are "retarded" or "slow" or "manipulating" or "seeking attention" or just "stupid" "worthless" "burden" etc. I head these things my entire life and was underestimated in the wrong areas, and over estimated in the wrong areas, so I could never ever fit in.

What does this have to do with anything I said? I am not saying I disagree with you on this part, but this is not applicable to anything I said.

I can give you some actual links, mommypotamus puts it in easy to understand words, because I knew others would be reading as well and I wanted to help them understand so they can have some insight into their health, so I posted that link. Not just for you, for anyone.

Then it would have more sense to post that on a separate post, with a summary or quote on the important points of the article is that is what you had intended. But sites like these also end up miss communicating the original research very easily too.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4241316/

These two links that you showed me, well the first one uses the second as evidence in their article, so I will be reviewing the second one:

https://www.mthfrsupport.com.au/link-between-mthfr-and-autism/

https://www.hindawi.com/journals/gri/2014/698574/abs/

Their evidence says:
“MTHFR 677T-allele frequency was found to be higher in autistic children compared with nonautistic children (29% versus 24%), but it was not found statistically significant.”

And their conclusion pointed out, was already mentioned in my of my posts, referring to the flaw of these studies(surround sampling sizes):

“We suggest replicating the study with larger well-characterized simplex families with nonautistic siblings, to determine the presence or absence of common MTHFR SNPs (especially C677T and A1298C). We recommend investigating this risk in a larger sample size with the same diagnostic criteria, same ethnicity and paying great attention to gender distribution to get reliable results in ASD.”

^same issue:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10803-010-1120-x


https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sravya_Thumoju/publication/265644222_Evaluation_of_C677T_Polymorphism_of_the_Methylenetetrahydrofolate_Reductase_MTHFR_Gene_in_various_Neurological_Disorders/links/587491fc08aebf17d3b1fcde/Evaluation-of-C677T-Polymorphism-of-the-Methylenetetrahydrofolate-Reductase-MTHFR-Gene-in-various-Neurological-Disorders.pdf

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11011-016-9815-0https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aur.1300

“The meta-analysis showed that the C677T polymorphism was found to be associated with ASD only in children from countries without food fortification. Our study indicated that the MTHFR C677T polymorphism contributes to increased ASD risk, and periconceptional folic acid may reduce ASD risk in those with MTHFR 677C>T polymorphism.”

 

Here is one more article about the issues in why it went missed for so long. As well as the bias when it comes to females and Autism Spectrum disorder.

https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/diagnosingrecognising-high-functioning-autism-in-adult-femaleschallenging-stereotypes-2165-7890-1000179.php?aid=75535

These are the symptoms and I have 10 out of 12, and severity depends on anxiety, what's going on in life, how my body is functioning, etc.

I know my heart, mind, body & brain better than anyone, especially any random person on the internet.

Judging people by their language or inability to communicate is not okay, and never okay, Society has made it okay, and it's not. 20% of society are on the spectrum and it is NOT okay to treat 20% of people like this, or ANYONE like this. We need to give people the benefit of the doubt, but have boundaries. We need to learn compassion and kindness and understanding above all right now. But, I'm going off on a tangent...

 

Here is one more article about the issues in why it went missed for so long. As well as the bias when it comes to females and Autism Spectrum disorder.

https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/diagnosingrecognising-high-functioning-autism-in-adult-femaleschallenging-stereotypes-2165-7890-1000179.php?aid=75535

View attachment 784986 View attachment 784994

How do they get ADHD? I get allegedly sometimes its comorbid, but some people with ADHD are almost polar opposite of autism (disdain for routine/reptition/ highly impulsive/ under-stimulated)

 

Very interesting post.

I think it is insightful especially with the thread comments about "communication disorder". My father has Asperger's and I, perhaps as his daughter and perhaps as an ENTP who is "blunt" can see the benefits of certain elements of his personality. Being raised by him, even from a very young age he didn't pull any punches. If I was excited that I assisted on a goal in soccer, he would reply that I didn't score the goal, and that only scoring counts in the metrics of the league. If I had zits on my face as an early teenager he would say "You have zits. They are marring your appearance - I read zinc might help, you should start it soon." Etc. He was always brutally honest as his view was that any dishonesty would be a barrier to altering the situation and achieving the desired outcome (I would learn that scoring in soccer was what mattered, not assisting; I would start zinc and clear up my appearance).

In my communications, I value honesty as well - lying to people is silly. If someone gets me an expensive present I won't use, I say I appreciate the thought but I won't use the present and can I return it for something else? I would expect the same done for me, and not have my feelings hurt. When I cook something for my boyfriend, if he hates it, I expect him to tell me so that I don't go to the trouble of cooking it again. All of this is appropriate and I think that in life and work, if most of us were more honest, things would be better. However, there is a catch.

If you don't account for the emotional response of the other person (my father was unable to do this because he couldn't read emotional cues or even understand them when they were explained until he started going to counseling for this), then you can't be productive, especially in personal relationships often, though everyone is at a different place with this. In work situations, there are benefits to the above outlooks, however if you are only looking at maximum efficiency, you are closing yourself off both to other ideas and to the ability to engage co-workers into solutions because their emotional response may detract from their ability to participate effectively.

So, I think that both sides need to come more to the middle, being the child of an ASD parent, and an ENTP that has a hard time integrating emotional elements into decision making, but also someone who has tried to bridge emotional communication gaps in my personal and work lives. Perhaps we have been too hard on the negatives of ASD and not critical enough of "normative" social elements. One isn't better or worse, they are different, and could both improve.