Consider MY Perpectives when considering what I “KNOW” –
“My entire life has essentially been one big misunderstanding about people. It wasn’t that I disliked people or was scared of them but I never got them. I thought other people (as a whole) acted in very irrational and often illogical/stupid ways. By the time I was diagnosed with Autism (at the age of 47), I had developed a strong coping strategy to deal with this “disconnect” that I called the “idiot bucket”. The Psychologist who diagnosed me actually thought I might have contempt for people due to this attitude that people were largely just tossed into my “idiot bucket”. I realize that this is a not-so-nice term but I am saying it as it happened because I see my strategy echoed in many of the youth I work with as well as my autistic adult peers. I think it is important that NT caregivers and friends understand where this comes from and how to support the ASD person who has developed an “idiot bucket” about people in general. This “bucket”…
was super important during my life without Autism Awareness because it allowed me to be okay with me despite the many miscommunications. Had I been forced to take responsibility for all of these disconnects without the benefit of knowing about Autism, I would have no self-esteem at all because I would assume that I was wrong all the time instead of speaking from a completely different (but completely valid) context. Learning about context/abstraction abilities now allows me to take responsibility. Whenever I have a “people are idiots” moment, I stop and clarify their perspective.. Whenever two people come at 1 problem with different contexts, they will have differing emotions, experiences, answers. Be careful that you take the time to know my context before you judge me. Hint…. It is most likely not like yours. It has been brought to my attention that the fourth column is not ALL ASD people. This is very true. The fourth column is interesting because those of us who were not diagnosed as children and have developed this strategy (assuming that NT is stupid versus taking responsibility) are actually in a healthier (overall) mental state. Those who assume that they are wrong are usually suffering from depression or sever anxiety along with depression by the time they are adults. This is why the diagnosis along with this understanding is so important.”
Related articles
- Come Into the Garden: Hidden Issues With Expressive Language (psychologytoday.com)
- First Autistic Presidential Appointee Lambastes Joe Scarborough And Autism Speaks (mediaite.com)
- Special Learning, Inc. Releases the February 2012 issue of the ABA Literature Summary on “Coping and Support Strategies for Families with Children with Autism” (prweb.com)
- Press Release – The Damaging Impact Of Seizures On Individuals With Autism (adelesymonds.wordpress.com)
- Review of “Pills Are Not for Preschoolers” by Marilyn Wedge (attentiondeficitwhatever.com)
- Silently Seizing: Common, Unrecognized and Frequently Missed Seizures and Their Potentially Damaging Impact on Individuals With Autism (aapcblog.com)
- Not just a boy thing: how doctors are letting down girls with autism (guardian.co.uk)
- Autism as Context Blindness and the ForeWord Clarion Review (aapcblog.com)
- Brain scans detect early signs of autism (examiner.com)
- Olympics (enjoyhi5autism.wordpress.com)
'Enjoying the Hi-5s of Autism' 