Social model of ASD

As we are discussing this again, I will share my point of view again. I am tired, so it may be more blunt than normal. 

I am what many would refer to as a 'high functioning autistic', I'm at a competitive university, and I'm succeeding. Most of the reason I'm succeeding is that the uni is putting a lot of resources into helping me access the course (single room for field trips, mentor, extra sessions with support staff, a lot of technology to help me access lectures and still more). However I can't use the tube independently at all, I require assistance when flying, so if I don't have a companion I need to book the professional assistance (well worth it in my opinion), and I require daily prompting to maintain basic hygiene. If you encountered me on public transport or in many non academic settings you would quite possibly not believe that I manage university to the degree I do. And even within academic settings, where autistic traits are not hard to find, I am still bad enough at masking that it is fairly obvious after spending very little time with me, that my wiring is a little off. 

I also have a lot of challenges that don't fit the social model of disability. My introception is nearly non existent, I can't really tell when to eat, drink, or go to the toilet. These have and do endanger my health. Various aspects of my other sensory hyper and hyposentsitivities also endanger my health at times. These have nothing to do with the societal setting, and everything to do with the fact that there is a disorder in my neurological wiring that isn't managing to process these signals appropriately.

Quite frankly, writing out an enormous list of my issues and things that helps is exhausting for me to do, and exhausting for the other person to read. ASD summarises most of them, and having a single piece of paper to use when I need to get help with something, is part of the reason I got a diagnosis in the first place.

Neither the medical model nor the social model is perfect. The social model will never be perfect because if I am sitting in the same room as an autistic person who benefits from coloured lights, who takes priority? Me who finds them overwhelming, or they who find them calming.

I have issues with the 'neurodivergent' premise because it can sometimes be used to excessively group people past common factors (e.g. what is the advice for one form of neurodivergence can sometimes be actively harmful for others under the same umbrella, and I find many people who use it are not referring to the whole umbrella, but fail to appropriately identify this as they are arguing for the lack of the labels that they need to use for clarity and safety). And I think that the neurodiversity paradigm has similar if not yet more problems to the social model and neurodivergent model.

Feel free to disagree with me on any and all of these, other than my lived experience. I am sometimes prepared to debate it further, but I make no promises. It is exam season and my spoons are low.

Fibonacci Squid said:

I also have a lot of challenges that don't fit the social model of disability. My introception is nearly non existent, I can't really tell when to eat, drink, or go to the toilet. These have and do endanger my health. Various aspects of my other sensory hyper and hyposentsitivities also endanger my health at times. These have nothing to do with the societal setting, and everything to do with the fact that there is a disorder in my neurological wiring that isn't managing to process these signals appropriately.

I mean the social model of disability can and has been applied to thinks like being wheelchair bound etc. if there is always a toilet near by it doesn't matter if you need one on short notice. if you can activly monotor your food intake you can manage it. If sociaty provides you with the right tools / enviroment these issues can be managed.

That's the social model. The social model says 'yes it might be nice to have legs to use steps ... but the issue here is sociaties lack of ramps for people in wheelchairs.'

Fibonacci Squid said:

I also have a lot of challenges that don't fit the social model of disability. My introception is nearly non existent, I can't really tell when to eat, drink, or go to the toilet. These have and do endanger my health. Various aspects of my other sensory hyper and hyposentsitivities also endanger my health at times. These have nothing to do with the societal setting, and everything to do with the fact that there is a disorder in my neurological wiring that isn't managing to process these signals appropriately.

I mean the social model of disability can and has been applied to thinks like being wheelchair bound etc. if there is always a toilet near by it doesn't matter if you need one on short notice. if you can activly monotor your food intake you can manage it. If sociaty provides you with the right tools / enviroment these issues can be managed.

That's the social model. The social model says 'yes it might be nice to have legs to use steps ... but the issue here is sociaties lack of ramps for people in wheelchairs.'

That's why you need a metaphorical snooze button. you reschedual in your phone for an hour later if the alert goes off at a bad time.

I have an app for tracking eating and toileting is done largely through context relations in my routines.

However, if routine going off means that my reminder happens at a time when I can't eat due to whatever logistical reasons, I don't tend to then remember to reschedule it.

Same for if the routine milestones to toilet don't happen.

Honestly, I'm miles better than I was when it first became evident this was a problem, particularly around toileting and drinking. Eating is taking more work, and I still require regular meetings with actual people around it, but hopefully I will also get to a point with that where it's something I can self manage without assistance from others.

sounds like the kind of thing where you could program a smart phone to tell you to go to the toilet and eat periodicly?

My goodness, I thought my symptoms were bad but yours are on a different level. Sorry for you.

BTW, I would advise you to keep your blood sugar level checked. Eating like this is a good way to get diabetes. 

Peter said:

if there is always a toilet near by it doesn't matter if you need one on short notice. if you can activly monotor your food intake you can manage it.

I think you misunderstood the toilet issue. It's not that I need one at short notice. It's that I don't notice I need it and it backs up and gets infected. 

And I can't monitor my food intake, that's the problem. If things in my day change even a little bit (which I think we can both agree is always going to be unavoidable) I stop eating. Also when I do eat because I can't tell when I'm full I overeat until I'm nauseous/refluxing/sometimes actually sick. My weight is all over the place as a result of these things

And I have difficulty identifying illness and injury as a result of the hyposensitivities.