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I'm Brian and so's my wife

Twitch

Since I went 'public' about my ASD diagnosis I've had more than one person say to me 'We're all on the spectrum mate'. At the time I found the comment slightly offensive, as if they were saying, 'You're not the only one who's got issues, just get over it', but on reflection, perhaps they have a point. In this crazy world where the borders of 'normality' are infinitely blurred, could it be that we are all on one big spectrum, but only some of us in the 'zone' that is currently classed as a disorder? I can't help wondering if everyone did the tests and questionnaires that I did when being assessed what percentage of the population would be diagnosed. The very first test I did came as quite a shock because the questions seemed so very appropriate to how I was feeling, and it returned a result of high probability. I can't decide if that's just because I do actually have ASD or because some of those questions would apply to anyone doing the test. I'd be interested to hear people's opinion on this, especially if anyone out there has done the test and returned a negative result i.e. low probability.

Parents

  • What I find absolutely hilarious is that one of my friends the other day stated "There's still a lot of abelism/disableism in our society" then about an hour later brought up the subject of who he thinks is on the spectrum based on nothing but his own perception and in the same breath suggests my post-viral fatigue is "just anxiety". This is coming from someone who is neurodivergent themselves but is very good and more than able at playing the social game.

    I see autism like a cake. You need certain elements to make a cake eg flour,  butter, sugar eggs (none of this gluten free stuff im talking basic traditional cake). You can have all these ingredients in varying proportions but it's still a cake. Some people might have extra ingredients or toppings but you cannot make a basic cake without those things. So when my other friend who I know very well, states in an off the cuff remark she thinks she's "on the spectrum", what I wanted to suggest was she probably has got only eggs and butter which makes an omelette, not a cake. Ironically I couldn't process my way through this in real time so didn't say it. 

    There are people, like my friend, who have similar traits, but from knowing her, it has a different root cause (upbringing and child development). To me, autism is an internal processing difference which is fundamentally different to people who are not autistic and this may or may not manifest externally.

    Sorry if I've gone off on one and it isnt wholly relevant but I've needed to get it off my chest for two days,

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  • What I find absolutely hilarious is that one of my friends the other day stated "There's still a lot of abelism/disableism in our society" then about an hour later brought up the subject of who he thinks is on the spectrum based on nothing but his own perception and in the same breath suggests my post-viral fatigue is "just anxiety". This is coming from someone who is neurodivergent themselves but is very good and more than able at playing the social game.

    I see autism like a cake. You need certain elements to make a cake eg flour,  butter, sugar eggs (none of this gluten free stuff im talking basic traditional cake). You can have all these ingredients in varying proportions but it's still a cake. Some people might have extra ingredients or toppings but you cannot make a basic cake without those things. So when my other friend who I know very well, states in an off the cuff remark she thinks she's "on the spectrum", what I wanted to suggest was she probably has got only eggs and butter which makes an omelette, not a cake. Ironically I couldn't process my way through this in real time so didn't say it. 

    There are people, like my friend, who have similar traits, but from knowing her, it has a different root cause (upbringing and child development). To me, autism is an internal processing difference which is fundamentally different to people who are not autistic and this may or may not manifest externally.

    Sorry if I've gone off on one and it isnt wholly relevant but I've needed to get it off my chest for two days,

Children
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