Hi. I have ASD, diagnosed proper years ago. I have grown up around more ASD individuals than you have, full stop. I have shadowed ABA clinicians for years.
I strongly attest that the statement that younger generations self-diagnosing is all-around harmful is 100% factual and indismissable. There is nothing ignorant about the provable truth.
Asbergers is a nazi term and should not be used. And yes, I’m AuDHD.
“People just pretend to be autistic so they can get special treatment” is a toxic, ableist stereotype and absolutely unacceptable. I assumed that would be a given in a space about autism. Silly me.
It’s pretty clear that there tends to be a lack of differential diagnosis and inability to judge severity of symptoms when it comes to self-diagnosis. People see some matching symptoms and go “I must have this!” when it could be 20 other things.
Though i also dunno if needing treatment or special care is the best metric to use since it’s very possible to have ASD and just get by with masking (obv not in all cases).
That’s not a thing, though… there is no epidemic of people self-misdiagnosing disorders… which is why I called it ignorant boomer logic.
But moreso, it’s harmful, because perpetuating this non-existent problem harms those of us fighting for acceptance by encouraging that we be questioned and distrusted (let alone having to deal with the usual stigmas).
Neurodiversity shouldn’t be seen as a “disorder” at all… we need to accept that different people just work differently, and that’s okay, and one set of expectations/assumptions doesn’t work for everybody.
If someone is having a hard time, trust them. If they suspect it’s because of an undiagnosed neurodiversity, support them and help them. Calling ANYONE a fake is - again - extremely harmful and must not be left unchallenged.
Even your use of the word “special” is problematic, and goes right back to the original comment I responded to. ND people don’t want or need special treatment, just different treatment. We have to get past this mentality that something is “wrong” with ND people or that treating people as unique individuals is “special”.
Oh yea, I’d never question anyone having a hard time. In the context of the meme specifically it doesn’t make much sense to question things, now that I think about it. If only autistic people go “yea sounds about right” there’s a good chance you’re autistic anyway.
But I’ve seen it personally where ppl match some symptoms and become utterly convinced they must have a specific disorder, and it doesn’t make sense either. There’s no huge harm to it but esp an awareness of differential diagnosis seems to be lacking.
Sure. These days, at some point, almost everyone has searched for symptoms on the internet only for WebMD to tell them they have cancer. I’m saying that’s not an actual epidemic… and when I said we need to help and support others, encouraging them to seek a proper diagnosis is part of that. And mind you, pursuing a formal diagnosis can be a REALLY difficult thing for ND people (and especially for adults).
It doesn’t help that there are a lot of really ignorant, harmful doctors out there (e.g. those that think ADHD doesn’t exist or that Autism isn’t a “spectrum” and only “severe” cases are “real”). So yeah, if people think they have something, lets support and encourage them, and help them to get what they need. Perpetuating stigmas and spreading distrust doesn’t do that.
I think it’s best to encourage people to go see professionals if they suspect they might have a disorder or any kind of illness. But I think it’s detrimental to tell them they are just imagining things as this might lead to serious issues flying under the radar.
This is a nice, optimal idea, but so many people don’t have access to that. As an adult, getting diagnosed is a pain in the ass at best, and that’s if you have decent insurance (USA here). Ultimately, everyone should get diagnosed by a doctor, but till we have the ability to do so, self-diagnosis has the ability to connect to a community that may be able to support someone who does have such a condition, but no ability to get the diagnosis.
Since you mentioned the need for treatment and special care, I’d like to take a moment to add onto my previous statement a little bit about what I meant. I do think some level of treatment and mental health care should be readily available to everyone unconditionally.
I just don’t think as many neuro-atypical children are as atypical as our current society is leading them to believe. Especially when you consider some companies are actually marketing corrective medications directly to children and young adults, then there is added pressure for them to be this label they assign to their urges and stresses so that they can obtain the “magic candy that fixes everything and definitely doesn’t cause problems later in life.”
That should all be in very stark contrast to everyday disabilities and developmental disorders.
As an Aspie myself, fuck letting other people take away the term I grew up using that accurately described my life experience and allowed me to access the resources I needed just because the person who coined it had a shady history. Thats prime reclaim territory as that fucker NEVER had anything to do with the term for me, nor I imagen it did for the vast majority of other people with the Asperger Syndrome diagnosis.
Hans Asperger was a Nazi “racial purity” scientist who was personally responsible for the “euthanization” (murder) and experimentation (torture) of dozens-to-hundreds of children. Children who were like us. Aspergers name was not attached to the diagnosis until 1994 in the DSM 4 (without the usual due diligence in naming) and then removed in the very next edition (DSM 5). Asperger wasn’t even the first to describe the condition, that honor goes to Grunya Sukhareva (1925).
Now, if you want to honor a Nazi mass murderer whose specialty was murdering and torturing people like us by carrying his name as part of your personal identity… well, that’s on you. But I really hope to god you don’t casually use that name to refer to others.
Aside from him being a Nazi? No I dont, and Im going to stop reading past your first sentence because I have no interest in learning anything further because a shitty nazi has “practically” nothing to do with my diagnosis and never did. You are the one honouring him by tying the diagnosis to him. He has NOTHING to do with my diagnosis to me, and never will, and I imagine this is true for the VAST MAJORITY of Aspies.
My apologies, the term was replaced by ASD in 2013 when Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition was released. I thank you for your patience as we all transition to the new terminology.
I didn’t say they wanted special treatment, I said they wanted an excuse to rationalize their human weakness, as do we all. We should not let it interfere with real diagnosis and treatment, as the term’s associated symptoms can expand, it’s use can become muddied and controversies can arise amongst medical researchers.
Congratulations, that’s most ableist ignorant boomer garbage I’ve heard all day… and my inlaws are visiting.
Hi. I have ASD, diagnosed proper years ago. I have grown up around more ASD individuals than you have, full stop. I have shadowed ABA clinicians for years.
I strongly attest that the statement that younger generations self-diagnosing is all-around harmful is 100% factual and indismissable. There is nothing ignorant about the provable truth.
Ah yes, your personal anecdotal “provable truth”. Please do better. For all our sakes.
Alright, please link your peer-reviewed study on this as soon as you were able to prove the generality of your personal impressions.
Except for this guy, this guy clearly has Asperger’s or something equally debilitating and socially awkward.
Yeah maybe don’t use ASD as a derogatory? Thanks.
That’s fair. I saw an opportunity for comedy and I was temporarily possessed by the spirit of Norm McDonald, rest in peace.
Asbergers is a nazi term and should not be used. And yes, I’m AuDHD.
“People just pretend to be autistic so they can get special treatment” is a toxic, ableist stereotype and absolutely unacceptable. I assumed that would be a given in a space about autism. Silly me.
That’s not even remotely what they said lmao
It’s pretty clear that there tends to be a lack of differential diagnosis and inability to judge severity of symptoms when it comes to self-diagnosis. People see some matching symptoms and go “I must have this!” when it could be 20 other things.
Though i also dunno if needing treatment or special care is the best metric to use since it’s very possible to have ASD and just get by with masking (obv not in all cases).
That’s not a thing, though… there is no epidemic of people self-misdiagnosing disorders… which is why I called it ignorant boomer logic.
But moreso, it’s harmful, because perpetuating this non-existent problem harms those of us fighting for acceptance by encouraging that we be questioned and distrusted (let alone having to deal with the usual stigmas).
Neurodiversity shouldn’t be seen as a “disorder” at all… we need to accept that different people just work differently, and that’s okay, and one set of expectations/assumptions doesn’t work for everybody.
If someone is having a hard time, trust them. If they suspect it’s because of an undiagnosed neurodiversity, support them and help them. Calling ANYONE a fake is - again - extremely harmful and must not be left unchallenged.
Even your use of the word “special” is problematic, and goes right back to the original comment I responded to. ND people don’t want or need special treatment, just different treatment. We have to get past this mentality that something is “wrong” with ND people or that treating people as unique individuals is “special”.
Oh yea, I’d never question anyone having a hard time. In the context of the meme specifically it doesn’t make much sense to question things, now that I think about it. If only autistic people go “yea sounds about right” there’s a good chance you’re autistic anyway.
But I’ve seen it personally where ppl match some symptoms and become utterly convinced they must have a specific disorder, and it doesn’t make sense either. There’s no huge harm to it but esp an awareness of differential diagnosis seems to be lacking.
Sure. These days, at some point, almost everyone has searched for symptoms on the internet only for WebMD to tell them they have cancer. I’m saying that’s not an actual epidemic… and when I said we need to help and support others, encouraging them to seek a proper diagnosis is part of that. And mind you, pursuing a formal diagnosis can be a REALLY difficult thing for ND people (and especially for adults).
It doesn’t help that there are a lot of really ignorant, harmful doctors out there (e.g. those that think ADHD doesn’t exist or that Autism isn’t a “spectrum” and only “severe” cases are “real”). So yeah, if people think they have something, lets support and encourage them, and help them to get what they need. Perpetuating stigmas and spreading distrust doesn’t do that.
I think it’s best to encourage people to go see professionals if they suspect they might have a disorder or any kind of illness. But I think it’s detrimental to tell them they are just imagining things as this might lead to serious issues flying under the radar.
Let the people decide who studied this.
This is a nice, optimal idea, but so many people don’t have access to that. As an adult, getting diagnosed is a pain in the ass at best, and that’s if you have decent insurance (USA here). Ultimately, everyone should get diagnosed by a doctor, but till we have the ability to do so, self-diagnosis has the ability to connect to a community that may be able to support someone who does have such a condition, but no ability to get the diagnosis.
Since you mentioned the need for treatment and special care, I’d like to take a moment to add onto my previous statement a little bit about what I meant. I do think some level of treatment and mental health care should be readily available to everyone unconditionally.
I just don’t think as many neuro-atypical children are as atypical as our current society is leading them to believe. Especially when you consider some companies are actually marketing corrective medications directly to children and young adults, then there is added pressure for them to be this label they assign to their urges and stresses so that they can obtain the “magic candy that fixes everything and definitely doesn’t cause problems later in life.”
That should all be in very stark contrast to everyday disabilities and developmental disorders.
As an Aspie myself, fuck letting other people take away the term I grew up using that accurately described my life experience and allowed me to access the resources I needed just because the person who coined it had a shady history. Thats prime reclaim territory as that fucker NEVER had anything to do with the term for me, nor I imagen it did for the vast majority of other people with the Asperger Syndrome diagnosis.
Are you familiar with Hans Asperger?
Hans Asperger was a Nazi “racial purity” scientist who was personally responsible for the “euthanization” (murder) and experimentation (torture) of dozens-to-hundreds of children. Children who were like us. Aspergers name was not attached to the diagnosis until 1994 in the DSM 4 (without the usual due diligence in naming) and then removed in the very next edition (DSM 5). Asperger wasn’t even the first to describe the condition, that honor goes to Grunya Sukhareva (1925).
Now, if you want to honor a Nazi mass murderer whose specialty was murdering and torturing people like us by carrying his name as part of your personal identity… well, that’s on you. But I really hope to god you don’t casually use that name to refer to others.
Aside from him being a Nazi? No I dont, and Im going to stop reading past your first sentence because I have no interest in learning anything further because a shitty nazi has “practically” nothing to do with my diagnosis and never did. You are the one honouring him by tying the diagnosis to him. He has NOTHING to do with my diagnosis to me, and never will, and I imagine this is true for the VAST MAJORITY of Aspies.
My apologies, the term was replaced by ASD in 2013 when Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition was released. I thank you for your patience as we all transition to the new terminology.
I didn’t say they wanted special treatment, I said they wanted an excuse to rationalize their human weakness, as do we all. We should not let it interfere with real diagnosis and treatment, as the term’s associated symptoms can expand, it’s use can become muddied and controversies can arise amongst medical researchers.