I recently read an article online (sorry folks thought I saved it but didn't, when I find it I will post it) about the ASD spectrum, and the idea there are many of us who would not qualify for an ASD diagnosis, but have Autistic traits, thereby suggesting we are all on the spectrum to one degree or another. I suspect it may have been a paper by Simon Baron-Cohen. Whoever it was that suggested this will get no argument from me. Our household is a living example of this theory. Whilst Harri is the only member to have a dx of ASD. His sister exhibits sensory processing issues, particularly auditory, and stimming. And my husband and I recently undertook the online Autism Quotient test leading to results that put us both close to the start of the ASD spectrum.
While the presentation our various ASD like qualities all manifest themselves in very unique ways, there is no doubt this is a household living very much within the continuum of ASD. And probably goes some way to explaining why my 18 year old daugher stays away so much. Some of that time however is spent at Uni doing a science degree. I'll say no more about that, except mmmm.
While the presentation our various ASD like qualities all manifest themselves in very unique ways, there is no doubt this is a household living very much within the continuum of ASD. And probably goes some way to explaining why my 18 year old daugher stays away so much. Some of that time however is spent at Uni doing a science degree. I'll say no more about that, except mmmm.
I think (my husband is convinced!) that I have a few autistic traits. My dad probably has a few more than me, **lol**. I've heard it said before (about us all being somewhere on the autism spectrum to one degree or other) and totally agree with it.
ReplyDeleteI see that a lot in my own home, and I'd be interested in reading that article if you find it. I was just having a brief discussion with my middle son this weekend trying to explain the difference between qualifying for an ASD diagnosis and having some ASD issues or tendencies.
ReplyDeleteI scored way up there on that Autism Quotient test, BTW, but I know I function well enough in my life that actually being diagnosed would be an iffy proposition. Still, viewing my life within this framework clears up a lot of things for me. And I know two of my three kids would never receive a diagnosis, but at least one of them shows a few definite tendencies that remind me strongly of his ASD brother.
The bottom line for us has always been about finding what's helpful. If a label provides some insight or access to assistance, then it's useful. For us, the spectrum concept helps to explain why some things that are helpful to one of us with a diagnosis can also be helpful to other members of the family, and it also explains why some things are especially challenging for more than one of us, too.
My dad and I are pretty close. We both took to the autism dx the same way- lots of research. We both have said to each other "I'm pretty sure you're autistic, too." I have sensory issues and serious social anxiety, and my dad is all about concrete logic. As in he's a math genius but I remember him trying to teach me advanced algebra in the 3rd grade for a problem that was asking for simple guess and check work haha. I read a similar scenario in Daniel Mont's A Different Kind of Boy about his son with HFA, whose teacher once said he must have not been a genius at math like everyone said, because he couldn't wrap his head around guess and check work, and I had to call my dad up. The boy, Alex, in the story was a math genius, he just wanted a logical formula. SO my dad!
ReplyDeleteWow so many others relate to this. Very validating. My hubby and I have starting having conversations with family members about this, and the more people we talk to, the more come forward with comments such as, I love statistics etc Things we never knew about the internal worlds of each other now being exposed, shared, enjoyed and marvelled at. All very cool. This is the gift of ASD in our family currently.
ReplyDeleteYou'll get no argument from me on this one either. Once our boys started getting diagnoses, we discovered we (my husband and I) had a lot of the same traits but to a lesser degree. In learning how to accommodate them, I have also learned how to accommodate myself--which has increased my productivity significantly. (A good thing, since the boys require quite a bit that means I need to be more productive.)
ReplyDeleteYES! My whole family is...quirky.
ReplyDeleteI attended a talk by Tony Attwood some years back where (I hope I am paraphrasing correctly) he said that autism is like a 100 piece puzzle. He looked out at his audience and said, "everybody in this room has at least 40 of those pieces." and went on to say that if one has 70 or so pieces of the puzzle one might be diagnosed with aspergers...and that if one had 80-90 pieces, one might be diagnosed with autism...
ReplyDeleteIt is a concept that I have found useful...
Anon, that is an absolutely perfect analogy. I'm going to use that.
ReplyDelete