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Please GET RID of functioning labels!!!

Hope

Okay, I need to rant. Today I felt CryYell after an ignorant Neurotypical told me that I am 'really high-functioning'. This person, athough not an expert, does work with people who have autism. She does not know me that well, so what does she mean by this? I look, for want of a better word, normal, very normal in fact. There are no outward signs of disability; I have a University degree, I am eloquent and can speak clearly, and do not exhibit any concerning behaviour when I am out in public (note - if I am highly stressed, I can put myself in danger, but most of the time I do not display any strange behaviour). Yes my traits not immediately obvious, but my life is severely impacted by my traits: I cannot organise my life without parental support; I have OCD;dyscalculia; anxiety. Now, on there own, these traits might not be that significant, but when combined, they prevent me from working and living a full and varied life - is there anything high-functioning about this?!!! This label trivialises my difficulties and is incredibly patronising. Has anyone else here experienced  anguish upon hearing this term? Has anyone else been described as 'high-functioning', while disagreeing that the term applies to them? And is not 'low functioning' equally problematic?

 

Parents

  • Good rant, Hope, nailed it again, Longman! Totally agree with you both.

    I think that this is yet another example of Homo Sapiens' reasoning about Homo Aspie. First, they assume that an ASD is a 'poor cripple' and then think they're great when they say 'but you're high functioning'. It's offensive.

    Grrr *^^%!!!Yell

    I completely agree with Hope, and for the same reasons, so my answer to her concluding question is YES, ME TOO.

    Homo Sapiens doesn't seem to have the same brain function as Homo Aspie. I've defined these terms for myself because I had to, I can't get my head round being an ASD Homo Sapiens when they work differently and, to my mind, much less efficiently, thoughtfully, inclusively, globally, logically or sanely as me. I don't feel like a version of H Sapiens, I feel like an H Aspie

    All of my past troubles (and many of my present ones) are because of the difficulty I have with living and functioning in their world. I have compared it to the problems they must have had when H Sapiens first appeared in the world of H Erectus. Are we the next evolution of humanity? Does this postulation and question make sense to anyone?

    And they call us weird!

Reply

  • Good rant, Hope, nailed it again, Longman! Totally agree with you both.

    I think that this is yet another example of Homo Sapiens' reasoning about Homo Aspie. First, they assume that an ASD is a 'poor cripple' and then think they're great when they say 'but you're high functioning'. It's offensive.

    Grrr *^^%!!!Yell

    I completely agree with Hope, and for the same reasons, so my answer to her concluding question is YES, ME TOO.

    Homo Sapiens doesn't seem to have the same brain function as Homo Aspie. I've defined these terms for myself because I had to, I can't get my head round being an ASD Homo Sapiens when they work differently and, to my mind, much less efficiently, thoughtfully, inclusively, globally, logically or sanely as me. I don't feel like a version of H Sapiens, I feel like an H Aspie

    All of my past troubles (and many of my present ones) are because of the difficulty I have with living and functioning in their world. I have compared it to the problems they must have had when H Sapiens first appeared in the world of H Erectus. Are we the next evolution of humanity? Does this postulation and question make sense to anyone?

    And they call us weird!

Children
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