Autistic Input

In response to:"Legislated Pain"

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:19:41 +0200

wow...thats very good..I feel somehow that I need to learn to forgive and forget and ask for forgiveness..and move on...

thanks Brian

In response to:Four Autistic Advocacy Phases in a Cycle

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 17:11:56 +0200

The problem, Jay, is that I can take that as a criticism or as a compliment.

Perhaps another illustration is due. About thirty years ago, when I was first getting into electrical work, and had done some work at an acquiantance's house, this conversation ensued:

The acquaintance, a man, said, "There's just one thing wrong with your work."

I said, "Yes, and what would that be?"

He kept delaying the answer by saying such things as "Are you sure you want to hear this?"

Finally he, repeated his statement and gave me an answer: "There's just one thing wrong with your work, and that is, you are just plain too thorough. Even other electricians would not spend the time to check their work the way you do!"

I could take that either way...as a criticism, or as a compliment.

That's how so much of life is...so ambivalent...in nature.

In response to:Four Autistic Advocacy Phases in a Cycle

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 16:06:17 +0200

you're smart!!!

In response to:The Four Stops

Fri, 02 May 2008 22:09:31 +0200

i am a police officer and i know that more than a few of my staff are autistic. not in the way most people seem to think..but in different ways the one thing thatv they all have in common is that without exception they are all above average intellegence..it seems to go hand in hand.

i write this as i see your online and have not posted for a while hope you pop back some time:yes:

In response to:The Four Stops

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 07:00:24 +0200

:(

I am autistic then.

There is something wrong with the lot of them.

so it is we that should accept them. not them us. and if they don't accept us well. gee good riddance to bad rubbish.

There is something very wrong with society. but they say loudest. bell curve. mediocre. bell curve. mediocre.

the worst thing we can do is believe them. that there is something wrong with them.

they speak loud coz they know they don't have it. so they make you feel bad coz they know you don't care therefore you care. so they make you feel worse than them, thats coz they are actually worse than you. so they use their other talents, their trickies.

In response to:The Four Stops

Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:40:00 +0200

The faculties are together in the writing, but not in the social scene, when trying to communicate with others face-to-face. The faculties of the other person are there too, but the two faculties in the face-to-face interaction are not sychronized, and the flow is absent; likewise the communication falters from the beginning, and the needs of the individual are not addressed.

When the autistic person, for example, does not make much eye contact, the other person "knows" that this is a "game" of trying to garner attention by "pretending" to hide information or feeling that might be very relevant to the discussion, and in "knowing" this, the other person becomes disengaged, as he or she does not want to play this "game".

The autistic person tries in earnest to declare, often very ballantly, that there is no game, but the discussion then veers away from the initial concerns to the concerns over the autistic's behaviour at that moment, and why he or she will not maintain eye contact (like actors on a soap opera). When the autistic tries to show that this steady eye contact is not an enjoyable (and often painful) act that distracts the autistic from maintaining thought on the subject of the discussion, the other person becomes a preacher, and starts to say to the autistic many rhetorical statements, such as "It's all in your mind. Why would you let eye contact bother you?"

This moral indignation over the autistic's behaviour (and often his verbal ways of addressing issues) continues with such points as "positive" thinking and avoiding "self-pity", when none of these topics were part of the original discussion.

Too often, the contact is broken, as both sides see the resultant discussion leading no where, and one (or both) decides to leave the interaction. The social setting has been destroyed.

This is but one of many possible senarios in the social scene. Another senario would be the autistic finding a creative approach to an old joke, and trying to add it to the interaction, only to find that the others either do not comprehend what the autistic was saying by adding the comment to the joke, or finding the comment, itself, very distasteful and not worthy of further comment.

This only makes the social scene more divisive, and the autistic is left wondering if there is any hope, at all, in trying to make social contact with others when all the results seem to be so dire and isolating.

The culture, itself, does play a large roll in this interaction, but, unfortunately, with television (and now utube) the social behaviours of people looking at each other in the eye for extended periods of time are being developed as a global phenomena, and the autistic cannot find a niche anywhere, where such eye contact is not demanded as part of the requirements in face-to-face interactions.

It's not just eye contact, but many other issues that can prejudice others in the social scene. Even Albert Einstein, whom many feel was an autistic, himself, had a shower or bath about once a month (or less), and in today's world (with all the advertisements) that is just not accepted by others when in a face-to-face interaction. How many potential employers would want to hire a person who has not had a shower or bath in the past two months before an job interview?

O, it's so easy to say that these social "quacks" can be easily "cured" by explaining to the autistic why he or she must adhere to the "norms" of the situation, both in time and culture, but often that is the issue--how difficult, if not impossible that really is for the autistic. The preaching then begins, again, and the social scene between the autistic and the preacher ends with another stalemate. The autistic is still looking for awareness that his autism is "real" from the other person (whom he feels is still ignoring the issue), and also needs acceptance for his ways of behaving (even though the other person will vehemently deny that such behaviour can be tolerated, to any extent).

There are many other people who have, over the past sixty years, been willing, first, to be aware that autistics do have different needs and methods of communicating both in words and in behaviour. Others, too, are willing to accept the person for who he is, without the hassle of trying to reform him to be "normal" (as seen as a requirement for integration into society).

However, despite these few people, the rest of society still seems to hold a "grudge" against the autistic for not making it clear that his behaviour cannot be tolerated (let alone accepted) by others, and if he wants to get more friends and be able to associate with others on the social scene, the ball is now in his court--he is the only one who can change himself (and he will never be able to change others). When the autistic tries to show that others have the same imperative--to change themselves, and that they cannot change him, there is a permanent impasse. The feelings of alienation are present on both sides, and there is no hope for any way of resolving the standoff between the autistic and those who are not aware of the autism nor accepting of it.

Almost every time the autistic tries to engage with others, the same interaction occurs. For example, when, during a lunch break, many others in the lunch room are discussing the recent soccer game, the autistic tries to change the subject, as he has no interest in soccer. Others wonder why he would want to change the subject (as they are very keen on the series), and do not respond to his initiative to start a new subject (such as the return of a certain butterfly to the area). He, in turn, is lost with this response, and cannot figure out why most, if not all the others in that lunch room are ignoring him. He speaks again to the person beside him, who, again, turns to the others in their discussion of soccer. That just leaves the autistic feeling more isolated, and for anyone to ask why the autistic cannot become engaged in the soccer discussion only makes him express the counter-question--why others cannot become engaged in the butterfly discussion that he raised. Again, the impasse ensues.

This is the plight of the autistic, as he attempts to fulfill his mandate as (according to scientists) a social creature, like all human beings.

In response to:The Four Stops

Thu, 28 Jun 2007 10:17:56 +0200

If you said it as such. then I must be autistic too.

You seem to have all your faculties together. Why would you need the acceptance and be part of the unfortunate normal ill society that consumes billions of dollars in long term drug use due to 'normalization for peer acceptance'?

Why do you need to feel inferior when THEY are the inferior ones?

They use POWER on people like you
, give you labels to make you feel small so that they, the less intelligent can feel bigger than you.

Sigh.

The equation is wrong here.

you are with wrong people. Wrong neighbourhood.

such is life ! where we are plonked , that is where is shaped our self image.

Unless you have not provided enough info perhaps medically that you are 'sick' and not functionable. By which i do not have enough information. Otherwise my judgements stand

Whats the criteria for Passing the Autistic Labelling test anyway?

I only know about autism from Rain Man. And that guy clearly cannot function by himself independently. Then I would agree to the medical labelling. He does need help to live.

In response to:The Four Stops

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 15:39:01 +0200

As a person who has lived with Asperger's Syndrome (AS) for over six decades, I can attest to the intricacies of living with this condition and all the lack of understanding by others in the community.

The basic difference, to me, between classical autism and AS is that those with classical autism have far more verbal communication issues, as many never speak or do no speak for many years, or cannot assimilate the language speech patterns in their daily living. They also have cognitive problems, too.

That said, the social issues that accompany both AS and classical autism are still there. As a person with AS tries to express his own issues, interests, and emotions, those issues, interests, and emotions are often at odds with others around him, often due to culture. For example, I have had almost no interest in competitive issues (sports being the prime example). I often yearned to find others with whom I could be friends who would not advise me that I "should" or "must" become interested in competitive issues "as that is the way life is, today--it is very competitive!" That type of advice only made me feel more frustrated and withdrawn, as I could not get my message through to others that life does not have to be competitive for a person to enjoy life, day-by-day.

That is why I started this blog--to show that autistics, in general, including those with AS, have to not just get awareness, and acceptance going for them (and their individual lifestyle), but also must have input into what is happening around them (like the autistic adolescent who would rather be building a sculpture than engaging in track-and-field activities). Others have to be aware of his condition, accept him as part of the community, but also permit him to do his own thing, even if many (if not most) others are not interested in what he wants to pursue, in life.

Also, it's not just a matter of letting him pursue his intersts, while ignoring what he's doing (while, at the same time, promoting what others are doing). He needs the same interest and assistance from others in his goals, not just work goals or hobby goals (such as the one example of the sculpture), but also social goals--to find many friends who will associate with him without trying to get him over to "their side of the fence" on any issue.

That personal acceptance, empathy, friendship, and close relationship is there for the person with AS to get out of his "own inner world", but he has a lot of convincing to do to get that message through to others. It is important, to him, for others to show that he is not just accepted as a "friendly neighbour", but as a person worth pursuing--even as a partner inside or outside of marriage.

This applies to all "Aspies", both male and female.

In response to:The Four Stops

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 10:13:44 +0200

I'd be very interested in hearing your views on Asperger's Syndrome.
Having lived and worked with autistic and aspergic young adults for 3 years I have quite a lot of anecdotal evidence to the nature of these disorders.

In response to:The Four Stops

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 06:46:29 +0200

The border checkpoint is a metaphorical statement of one of the stops on the journey towards the goal at the end of the journey; it could be considered analagous to a "hurdle" or a "obstacle" that comes in the way (as the four stops on the journey do) as a person moves along. When a person, for example, crosses from El Salvador to Guatemala, then to Mexico, and on to the United States, and finally on to Canada, he or she must pass through four borders, and there are checkpoints at certain places which are legal crossings where a person presents all the papers/passports to get into the new territory. A person from El Salvador trying to get into Canada has the same struggles, metaphorically, as an autistic person has in trying to achieve integragion and involvement with others in life, as outlined in the journey.

Parallel to each of the four crossings, the four "stops" (ignorance, denial, "yes, but...", and lack of action in promoting the momemtum) are presented, and in each case, the autistic person must, metaphorically, have all the "papers" ready (with the help of others) in getting through these checkpoints and moving forward to the goal on the autistic journey.

The four countries mentioned are just one example. A person could start the journey in Australia, move on to Indonesia, through Singapore, on to Malaysia, and, and end up in Thailand as another example. There are so many possible examples of this journey through these border checkpoints. It's not the analogy, itself, but the main thesis of the autistic journey through the four steps (and past the four stops) to integration, that counts.

In response to:The Four Stops

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 05:11:06 +0200

Whats the border checkpoint?

I await as your writings unfold about autism.

In response to:Four Autistic Advocacy Phases in a Cycle

Thu, 14 Jun 2007 04:58:27 +0200

that is true. i do like your flow of words. they create marvellous painting for me, and it takes me to enjoy the seasons, meaning, no rush. it is as it is at the time it is. no hurry no rush.

that is true, simplicity comes from making sense of complexities. otherwise it is then it has a use.

like i said. if you are willing to educate, i am willing to learn. i know of no such person such as yourself so i will not even pretend to know. the only knowledge that i have would essentially come from pop movies. (would you disapprove?)

I know of people who say, oh i work with autistic kids. my brain would draw a blank.

so i look forward to your input eagerly while enjoying also your prose and the beauty of the way your brain works.

In response to:Four Autistic Advocacy Phases in a Cycle

Wed, 13 Jun 2007 13:05:24 +0200

It works during the day, and flows at night, during sleep. With flow, there are no restrictions, boundaries, limitations, or points of divisiveness. When awake, that flow returns to the work of reaching out to others, and permits ideas that have not been identified or classified, ideas that help to show the simplicities within the complexities of life.

Comments such as yours are very empathetic, even for an autistic person such as myself, and they help to keep communication flowing in the overwhelming, but isolated world that each of us lives in.

In response to:Four Autistic Advocacy Phases in a Cycle

Wed, 13 Jun 2007 06:00:59 +0200

i love the way your brain works

In response to:The Four Steps

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 05:12:41 +0200

I like your expression. it is very clear. I had not too long ago come across the term intuition feeling sensation perceiving from the Briggs Myers personality test. I am an INTP (intuitive thinker perceiver) myself, so recently I bought a book which I have barely started to understand those terms and those of others around me. The way you put it, i now understand very much more clearly the role of the different functions, therefore I am able to follow your input.

Press on !

In response to:What is Autistic Input?

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 00:49:37 +0200

Upon review, I seemed to have missed the first step: awareness. With awareness first, acceptance second, and input third, I guess I could call the forth step: integration. That seems to have been the four steps for many individuals and groups throughout history as they moved from "cult" to "culture". This is not an easy task, to be sure, but will be discussed in future blogs, along with ideas on how to get people out of their "own worlds" (as you put it) into a world of awareness, acceptance, input, and integration.

In response to:What is Autistic Input?

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 00:40:44 +0200

So much needs to be done that is clearly not being done. Society is gradually changing, but not fast enough. I find alot of people nowadays very closed-minded. Acceptance in society, as a whole, is key, in my opinion. Everyone is an individual and has the power to give of themselves, the input, as you so put it. People seem too wrapped up in their own worlds and how they see it; if only they spent more time actually listening.

In response to:What is Autistic Input?

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 00:38:51 +0200

I am open. Educate me. I look forward to your blog with great interest.