Comments on: Autism and Asperger’s: Same or Different?

By: Laurentius-rex

Laurentius-rex — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 00:43:24 +0000

Well Someone I’d like to know who you are.

I have written and made a DVD which deals with this question and for what it is worth I have communicated with Lorna Wing about these issues. At the time of my making the DVD she concurred with my opinions, having given her an early draft of the script.

By: Autism Vox

Autism Vox — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 17:58:36 +0000

[...] Grinker’s sixth chapter, “Autism by the Book,” further notes “how murky the diagnostic waters of autism have become” (p. 141)—-and this seems to be the case for more than a few child psychiatric disorders as well as for autism. A recent discussion on Autism Vox about whether autism and Asperger’s are the same or different is further testament to those “murky diagnostic waters.” [...]

By: Someone

Someone — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 19:36:08 +0000

No. Again, it’s only a rumour; who knows if it is true or not. I’d ask her herself, but I don’t have her contact information.

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 17:10:36 +0000

Thanks for the clarifications—is there a particular article or book of Dr. Wing’s that you are referring to?

By: Someone

Someone — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 17:08:26 +0000

“I understand your concern that it might end up becoming some media-hyped overdiagnosis thing, but I think if that was going to happen, it would have already happened.”

Uh, I’m sorry to say this, but it already has. And I also wasn’t trying to describe the true nature of autism in a paragraph; sorry if it came across that way.

Also Dr. Chew to answer your question I have met online other autistic people who have felt alienated by others on the “spectrum” and (perhaps as a direct result) do not have great faith in the theory. I would name them, but that would be kind of rude and inappropriate to do because having anti-spectrum thoughts and believes are extremely unpopular amongst the autistic (both real and not) population, and thus I wouldn’t want to single them out. Also I’ve heard a rumour that Dr. Lorna Wing herself (the person who I think came up with the theory) no longer supports it, but I have yet to verify that. So yeah, that’s it for now.

By: Kassiane

Kassiane — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 08:06:39 +0000

Go sit in a room with 20+ adults diagnosed AS, HFA, PDDNOS, if you can find some CDD and speech preserved Rett put them in there too. All at roughly the same language level. Have them all communicate in the same or similar ways, so as to not make things obvious (hence speech preserved variant and not just any old girl with Rett).

Then figure out who’s who.

It’s no 2D spectrum, but even the “highest functioning” Aspegerian Aspie Supremicist has way more in common with the kid who may never master more than 50 words or showering unsupervised than they may want to admit.

It’s funny, I never hear people labeled as autistic try to dissociate themselves from the rest of the spectrum but I have heard many aspies do it, and I was informed by one guy dx’d PDDNOS (and who got very upset if referred to as autistic, he had PDD, you see) that stimming and sensory issues are for “bottom of the barrel” autistics.

Guess that’s where all the good deep pressure is…

By: zilari

zilari — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 07:23:23 +0000

Someone: I get the impression that the spectrum concept is useful inasmuch as it allows people to identify individuals who might share certain characteristics, thereby allowing more appropriate forms of education and addressing of issues. I understand your concern that it might end up becoming some media-hyped overdiagnosis thing, but I think if that was going to happen, it would have already happened. There seemed to be a surge of media attention after Wired published that “AQ” article, but that surge seems to be leveling off now, and only the people for whom the subject actually matters are sticking around to keep discussing and exploring it.

Though autistic people have likely existed for as long as humans have existed, the identification of people by the term “autistic” is relatively recent. Hence, different people and groups seem to be vying for “ownership” of the term (something that bothers me somewhat), and I doubt this is something that’s going to be resolved anytime soon.

I also don’t think that the “true nature of autism” is anything so simple as to be easily described in a single page or paragraph. Brains are too complicated for that.

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 07:23:12 +0000

Someone, who are others with your view?

By: Someone

Someone — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 06:24:31 +0000

Now we don’t have any evidence to suggest that all people with autism and AS (and other disorders) are interconnected somehow; it is still very much just a popular theory. To say that autism and AS is “all the same” when there are very little facts to support such a claim just comes off as fishy pseudoscience, to me. And I know that I’m not alone in feeling that way.

I’m not trying to be mean; I’m not trying to be cruel. I’m just letting anyone who reads this article know that opinions of the “autistic” online population are not unanimous in regards to the theories which concern the true nature of autism.

By: Kassiane

Kassiane — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 04:33:19 +0000

Autism is way too complicated to pin down with “autism” “aspergers” “pddnos” “cdd” and “rett”.

Using those labels divides a whole lot of people who have more in common INTERNALLY, but EXTERNALLY look very different. When you get a bag of gummy bears or whatever, they come in a whole zillions of colors, but theyre all gummy bears.

And unless you want to call a WHOLE LOT of people NOS, or make a WHOLE LOT of new categories-something that I dont think the scientific world is up to, and that defeats the purpose of the NOS designation, nonrespectively, using ‘autism’ for the big tent of ASD is, well….

I’m looking for a metaphor and all I see is the exhibit hall at a conference and it’s sorta working and sorta not. Metaphors aren’t my strongest.

But I don’t think autism is simple. If it was, people wouldnt somehow have 3 or more of the PDD labels assigned to them at different points in their lives, would they?