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Oyez, oyez! Calling all "high functioners"!

Deleted User

...Autism is a spectrum and everyone is different. What characterises a diagnosis of autism is if it has an impact on ones daily life. I am classed as "high functioning" but currently do not know what this means.

Overload as a result from doing less than what someone who is not autistic can do. This means currently bare minimum of activity because intolerance and sensory input cannot be regulated. 
Working hours are reduced because of the struggle to cope with full time even though preference is to work more. The load is primarily from executive function difficulties which also include the social aspect and sensory. Fatigue on a daily basis which impacts everything.

So, when people make throwaway comments like "we're all a bit autistic" or "I think my dog is a bit autistic" (yes, I was present), or labels like "high functioning", or someone gets imposter syndrome thinking they are "not autistic enough", just remember - the difficulties faced - on a daily basis - which many people do not face.

I'm not saying no-one else has problems, but they are of a different kind.

  • I am not saying I use these labels myself, this is why I put the term in inverted speech. Motivation for the thread wasn't to discuss the terms. It seems "high functioning", although not an official term or one I am diagnosed with, is still perceived by many to be the case. People who I would assume (from my reliable radar) that they don't have lived experience. Behind closed doors,  the difficulties are apparent. Since more people are aware of my status (which is still on a need to know basis), casual terms are chucked about in social group settings. This doesn't happen on a one to one basis with them, but more a thoughtful discussion. This further confirms my status of out_of_steppedness as I observe behaviours and opinions are inconsistent between individuals in different social contexts depending on numbers and who is present. But no one apart from me seems to notice or care.

    While I'm not responsible for other people's lack of understanding (no one is perfect and there are concepts I don't understand either), casual usage of the term when talking about another person or animal's idiosyncracies rather than difficulties which present on a daily basis does irk me. 

  • in reply to Peter

    You're out of date with the terminology's meaning, I'm afraid. Also, HFA has never been an official diagnostic term, only an informal one.

  • in reply to Bunny

    sigh here we go again. Ok I'm using this search for academic papers before 1990 as a refrence. These are some of the earlyest academic papers I could find that use the term 'high functioning.'

    This one "A study of intellectual abilities in high-functioning people with autism" is particularly telling and I will quote it here

    "We separately compared an independent population of nonretarded autistic children to groups of receptive developmental language disorder, dysthymic disorder, and oppositional disorder children of a similar age."

    That is the scientists definition of 'high functioning,' 'nonretarded autistic' where that term is being used in it's origioning medical sence of 'score in a retarded range on standardized IQ tests.'

    Or consider the definition used in "Visual memory processes in high-functioning individuals with autism":

    "Sixteen high-functioning autistic individuals participated in the study. They were separately diagnosed by a psychiatrist and a psychologist according to the full diagnostic criteria for infantile autism described in the DSM III (1980). The diagnoses included face-to-face interviews, review of medical records, and interview with parents. Both diagnosticians had to agree that autism was the primary diagnosis. No person was included who had a seizure disorder, cerebral palsy, or other secondary pathologies. All of these individuals had a Full-scale IQ of 68 or above on the Wechsler intelligence scales (range 68-108, ~-= 83, SD = 14). Their mean Performance IQ was 91 (range 71-112, SD = 13). Their mean Verbal IQ was 81 (range 54-111, SD = 16)."

    High functioning in the context of autism has always been high inteligence, usually as messured by IQ.

  • I fluctuate so wildly - in most regards; - coping - 'brightness' - independence - energy - focus - calm  .......

    I am never quite sure where  I 'fall' from one day to the next ... falling (or failing) ... or jumping ... or flapping.

    Many days, I just feel like I am an out-of-date curiosity......or an out-of-control oddity.

    It is a spectrum - yes.

  • in reply to Peter
    Peter said:
    My IQ has been messured at 123. That's it. That's what high functioning is. You have normal / high inteligence. The term has nothing to do with how well you function within sociaty or daily life.

    It actually has the opposite meaning of how you've described it. Per my previous reply, IQ levels can vary significantly among those who might be termed "high functioning". The term relates only to their - perceived / assumed - ability to cope in society and daily life. And therein lies part of the issue with the terminology.

  • 1. Definition:

    " “High-functioning autism” isn’t an official medical term or diagnosis. It’s an informal one some people use when they talk about people with autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, who can speak, read, write, and handle basic life skills like eating and getting dressed. They can live independently. ... IQ levels can also vary significantly."

    https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/high-functioning-autism

    2. Reasons why many within the autistic community - and many of those who support us in various capacities - have major issues with using high / low functioning labels:

    https://psychiatry-uk.com/higher-or-lower-why-using-functional-labels-to-describe-autism-is-problematic/

  • National Autistic Society guidance advises against using functioning labels, and I'm minded to agree with that. The 'low'/'high' dichotomy is too simplistic and goes against the concept of a 'spectrum'. Calling me 'high-functioning' suggests I don't struggle in so many ways. 

  • My IQ has been messured at 123. That's it. That's what high functioning is. You have normal / high inteligence. The term has nothing to do with how well you function within sociaty or daily life. Autistic people with high IQ are gona have better coping stratergies, usually, but not always. And sometimes having a good coping stratergy hurts you in the long run because when it breaks down no one is ready to help or make alowences.

  • I can function driving, but not stress. Today, I did some shopping. Then, whenever I came back, I broke one of the free-range eggs I bought today. But I was still able to fry it, for breakfast, so it wasn't a waste of time.

  • I thiink there's a lot of misunderstanding about what high functioning is and how it manifests. A person can be high functioning in some areas but can barely function in others. This seems to cause problems as people, both NT and Autistic, expect some sort of consistency and meeting your individual needs becomes tricky as they can't be systemised and helping agencies love systems and tick boxes.

    I'm not sure what high functioning means either although I suspect I fall into that box, it s seems to me to mean can you function on a day to day basis, keep yourself clean and fed etc.