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Autism (high functioning) root cause?

Stuart333

I have been considering this a lot to understand myself. Sorry about 'high functioning' terminology but I wanted to differentiate and I can't talk about anything I don't have experience of.

I have come to the conclusion that high functioning ASD is fundamentally an overly sensitive nervous system, which causes mode changes in the brain and inhibits social development, because people are unpredictable and a threat?

The sensitivity to over active nervous states drives confusion and mal-adapted coping mechanisms.

Parents

  • By the way, I am not suggesting that processing differences don't also exist, but being more logical or systems oriented doesn't explain the confusion, burnout, anxiety and other downstream behaviours. It is a question of what is beneath the 2nd order effects. Different sensory input and different sensitivity to that input, would explain most of it. Having different processing just increases the problem.

    But why can people happily play complicated games, generate art, master technical subjects, but also lose abilities when stressed? Cognitive powers are not constrained when calm, it is the nervous system driving the constraint I think.

    Anyway you can take what you want from it. If it is not helpful to you don't worry. But understanding how and why you function like you do is the key to successful accommodations and fulfilling your potential sustainably. Avoiding the scenarios or drivers of system overload is what spoon theory is all about too.

Reply

  • By the way, I am not suggesting that processing differences don't also exist, but being more logical or systems oriented doesn't explain the confusion, burnout, anxiety and other downstream behaviours. It is a question of what is beneath the 2nd order effects. Different sensory input and different sensitivity to that input, would explain most of it. Having different processing just increases the problem.

    But why can people happily play complicated games, generate art, master technical subjects, but also lose abilities when stressed? Cognitive powers are not constrained when calm, it is the nervous system driving the constraint I think.

    Anyway you can take what you want from it. If it is not helpful to you don't worry. But understanding how and why you function like you do is the key to successful accommodations and fulfilling your potential sustainably. Avoiding the scenarios or drivers of system overload is what spoon theory is all about too.

Children
  • in reply to Stuart333

    I think what you’re talking about is the nervous system in relation to burnout and the characteristics of autism in its self as opposed to social development and predictability maybe… "sensitive nervous system" fits some autistic people perfectly, especially those with high support needs related to sensory dysregulation. However, it might not describe others whose primary challenges are in social communication, executive functioning (planning, organizing), or adaptive skills, with minimal sensory issues but have also had a structured life with support . Autism is a broad spectrum….. I think I probably just focused on the part where you wrote “people are unpredictable and a threat” rather than the rest of your information