Absolutely excellent comparisons here. Left handedness being seen as wrong, not different. Similar with the corrective efforts of society to conform behaviors to the majority making it seem like there were less cases back then... And now for some fun facts because I came here to the comment section to talk about myself... I'm left handed. Just like autism, I inherited this trait from my father. He lived in the era where they corrected it out of you and his handwriting was unbelievably sloppy which may have been, in part, a side effect of these unnecessary corrections. By the time I was in school they had stopped trying to correct left-handedness but they did still try to correct how you held your writing tools. I use all of my fingers to write and they tried to make me use three fingers with a triangle that you could slip onto your writing utensil. Never adapted.
I've never managed to develop a "proper" tripod grip either. I'm ambidextrous, but was "encouraged to choose a hand" to write with at school - obviously my right hand was preferred by the teachers! When I learn a new skill, I still switch hands when I get tired/ need a break
JENN! Fascinating story, thank you. I didn’t realise you were a leftie. I’m meeting so many now in the comments - I wonder if it’s correlated with neurodivergence??
I was ambidextrous & in grade 1 my teacher told me I'm not allowed to be, I had to pick a hand. She told me the correct hand to pick was the right, because otherwise I'd never be able to use scissors lol. My OT told me that my five finger death grip on my pen is due to low muscle tone, which autistics are prone to.
My mom was a Special Ed Teacher in Canada. Back in the 80's, the vast majority of kids that got Autism Diagnoses had a least some intellectual disability, or issues with their verbal communication. Without those impairments, kids who were probably autistic were instead being diagnosed with things like OCD, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, or in the case of most girls, Borderline Personality, Eating Disorders, or even Bipolar. Those who were in the higher IQ range, even gifted, never got an Autism Diagnosis, they mostly got labeled with Depression or Anxiety, if a problem was noticed at all. Meltdowns and overwhelm were seen as just "behavioural issues", that needed to be addressed with a discipline plan or "tough love", or were the result of permissive/weak parenting. The Majority of those who were seen as being advance learners (if difficulties were acknowledged at all) were instead saddled with being told they were "not living up to their potential", "choosing to be picky or difficult", or having some other weakness of character. I am no expert, but it seems like a lot of ASD people my age had to suffer in silence, and the expansion of what autism looks like in the 90's and 00's can only be a good thing, and seeing a lot more diagnoses can only be a good thing too. Treating the wrong thing, or letting people grow up with harmful labels probably creates more of a problem for those who missed identification in their school years, than if nothing had been done at all, IMHO. I COULD have lived my life with my right hand tied behind my back, and learn to use my left; but my dexterity, handwriting, and ability to be creative would never live up to what it is having grown up using my dominate hand. I think that is a good analogy of what has happened for a lot of late-diagnosed adults, and why seen a massive uptick in new cases is really just such a positive thing!
This is the best description of what I faced growing up in the 70s and 80s as an intellectually gifted but undiagnosed autistic/ADHD person. Thank you.
My audhd kicked in. Not only did I search for it immediately, I refused to accept that this could have been a joke so I went on a 20-minute wild goose chase before I gave up trying to find a connection that just doesn't seem to be there. Meanwhile I forgot to take my morning meds, and flat-out forgot to brush my teeth, because the search interrupted my morning routine, which it wouldn't have, if I had only needed to listen to the video.
Oh heck! I’m here early, lol I’m diagnosed autistic now because when I was young, the diagnosticians only thought that white boys were autistic. And I’m also left handed 🤣
Hey Crafty! 🌱vegan 🌱 - how's it going? You know even today there are plenty of doctors who think that only young white boys can be autistic. It's still very much a problem! And yay for being left handed hahaha :)
As a sinister person self-diagnosed with autism, the analogy resonates. We lefties do have to work to fit into a right handed world, and, if you regularly use tools, it can be tiring and uncomfortable (for example, saw dust gets blown into your face instead of away).
lefties are more fun! i hate coffee mugs where if i grip it with my left hand, the picture faces inwards...i'm stubborn, so i'll burn my hand just to grip it wrong and show off my ironic mug!
I didn’t say so in my earlier comment, because I just fired off without watching the whole thing so the algorithm would hopefully like this video, but I am very impressed with the picture that Emily drew! She did an amazing job of it And those peeps are so cute and fluffy 🥰
Awwwww, thank you @CraftVegan. If it works, that would be great! And yeah - Emily's picture is really good! It took her 15 mins apparently. And she's 12. I couldn't draw that good if I took 15 days, and I'm 42! 🐣🐣🐣🐤🐥🐥 the peeps are all pets, and it's Nina's project really - but I'll show off how they're doing in the future! -Mike
@@Autistic_AF that’s so sweet about the peeps! I’ve heard they make amazingly affectionate pets, but I can’t keep any where I live. For some reason it’s frowned upon to keep chickens in a an apartment lol I can’t draw anymore, although I could when I was younger, but my spouse is very artistic and so is my oldest kiddo
Well, I'm working very hard at becoming autistic. I have the traits. They're easy. I've had them since I was an infant. But the diagnosis eludes me. I must be the attention seeking self diagnosed pretender that people are worried about. ( joke) 😂😂😂 but true too! 😅😢😂😂
@chinmeysway It can help you get accommodations. Legally, schools and some other places are supposed to accommodate disabilities. Also, I believe you could have some condition that may need treatment. Ideally, you'll be able to find out what it is and get treated. Finally, the diagnosis procedure might give you data about your strengths and weaknesses. This will lead to greater self understanding. This is just my thoughts about it. Could be more info or different info.
Wow. I literally just used this as an analogy, talking to my partner. You have explained it very well and that is very clever bringing in the study. Sending this on to him. Thanks for this! (and… even in this day and age, I ended up right handed even though it is not really naturally for me).
Both of my grandmothers were aghast at having a left-handed grandchild (me), and my mother did stop the more adamant one from 'converting me'.. the other just did her best at selling me on the idea of being ambidextrous, which I agree has been very handy several times in life. Autism wasn't recognized at the time, along with a whole group of parenting practices seen as normal today. I worked on some bureaucratic processes with a man recently diagnosed, and he kept mentioning his Autism as the reason for this or that. I hope I didn't put him off by describing 2-3 things he could do to work around his anxiety levels (all the good steps he'd already taken being the main one). I understand most things in hierarchies of very specific details, and find it easier to bridge the differences by joking "'Can't see the forest for the trees?? I'm your LEAF specialist!" Not mentioning any labels seems to avoid some of the irritation others can feel at things not going as they expected.
There’s an old Simpsons episode set in a Psychiatrist office . Ned Flander’s Parents and a shrink are trying to figure out what’s wrong with (childhood) Ned Flanders. Seems baby Ned was an awfully rambunctious child. He’s climbing on the Psychiatrist’s bookshelf in the background and throwing his books on the floor. So the Psychiatrist shouts at him: “STOP THAT!!! Most of those books haven’t been discredited yet!!!” The episode aired during The Simpsons so-called golden age in the 90s right around the time I experienced my first severe emotional collapse as an adult. Racked by paralyzing anxiety, agoraphobia and panic attacks, and Desperate for help, I turned to my doctor. She referred me to a psychologist. I spent several years in therapy spilling my guts to what I can only describe as a power and shame based quasi-Freudian behavioral quack PHD. It was awful, and I got nowhere. Each visit cost around $100, and I saw him every week in the mid 1990s. Needless to say, he never diagnosed my autism. Nor did any of the dozen or so subsequent psychotherapists or psychiatrists I turned to over the next 25 years, trying desperately to find relief from hell of what I now know was undiagnosed level one autism. All the while, in the back of my mind, little Ned Flanders was ripping those books off of the quack shrink’s bookshelf. All the while thinking “these people have no idea what they’re doing - but there’s no alternative 😖☹️” Well 30 years after I saw that Simpsons episode, I finally have the correct answer to the question: “What’s wrong with me?” “Nothing” There’s nothing wrong with me! I’m just different. 🤓 I knew THAT all along. What a nightmare. So much pain, confusion, self blame, shame, anxiety, and depression. Such a waste of time and effort and money. I’d sue them for incompetence, but they didn’t know any better at the time. No one did. Thank god, given that the cure was worse than the disease. The standard of care for autism was still is ABA therapy. I believe we are in the midst of a revolution in psychology and psychiatry regarding neurodiversity. Thanks to the activism and insight of content like this. I’m doing everything I can to “spread awareness” of autism- no matter how many sacred cows get gored in the process. “First - do no harm…” The mental health profession a lot to answer for, and they know it. They are afraid that their brutal pseudoscientific scam is coming to an end. That all of their books are about to discredited, and they’re going to have find an honest way to make living. PS: The treatment Ned is subjected too looks an awful lot like ABA therapy. He’s spanked repeatedly for no reason, and eventually, he breaks. This results in Ned’s overly religious, overly nice, people pleasing behavior as an adult. Much to his detriment. Oh, and Ned Flanders is left handed 🤓😉
Thank you for the video. In Australia it is very expensive to get a formal diagnosis as an adult and it is not covered by Medicare (our version of the NHS) or even private medical insurance. I was super privileged to get an opportunity after being on a wait list for months, but I was told to expect a wait of 12 or 18 months or more. It is only because my now ex partner (we have recently separated) found an article and survey that seem to indicate there were some flags to indicate this and the troubles we were having. Since then I have been formally diagnosed with ASD (mostly level 1, but 2 in some areas like relationships) and OCD just before my 45 birthday. It is a strange feeling as there is a mix of relief and grief of some of the difficulties I have faced in my life and if I had only had the support earlier.
@@Autistic_AF Yes, you are cool! Also, younger than somebody for sure (there is a 103 woman chatting intelligently and energetically on YT, and I am sure you are younger ), so it must count. Idea and presentation overall was cool. Easy to hear voice. 🐈
The comparison to left handedness only goes so far. I have medium support needs. Even society accepting autism and supporting me better will not make me completely functional. I definitely think that we should advocate for society to accommodate us. But for me I will still have problems functioning.
I am currently undergoing evaluation for late diagnosis of autism. I wanted to comment on whether "curing" handedness can be compared to ABA . I did not fit the criteria of autism when I was a child, but I was ambidextrous. Even though changing left handed kids into right handed ones was stopped because it is cruel and traumatic, there was still one category of kids that were subjected to forcing handedness, kids that could write with both hands. I was forced to write with one hand. It was worse than the bullying I endured. I have a strong reaction to ABA because of this. I think I have PTSD from being forced to write with one hand. kids are STILL being subjected to this form of "therapy" by practitioners of ABA if the child is autistic. It was a marginal practice when I endured it decades ago because it is unnecessarily cruel. But it is okay to do it to autistic kids.
The left-handedness graph is similar to many things right now, especially in invisible aspects of neurodivergence and other forms including transness. We are seeing an increase in trans people coming out because there is more access to care for us and public awareness. As an self-diagnosed autistic(w/officially diagnosed ADHD and TBI) and trans person, this graph describes so many of my identities.
My dad, born in 1944, was actually forced to use his right hand to write. So it was a lot more recent than Victorian times that right-handed ABA happened.
The numbers in Korea were surprising when first reported, but the stigma makes it a challenge for parents to even want to seek formal diagnosis to provide support to their children. And some of the older generation still insist on ABA therapy for left-handedness here. It was still in practice in some places just ten years ago. u.u
@@Autistic_AF To be fair, I'm not sure if I've heard it so much re: "rising autism rates" as much as other "rising rates of other things that are just being more accepted" (like I've heard trans people compare that with it) and I never made the ABA connection - you did a great job with it!
Nice, left handedness is the analogy that I use as well when discussing autism with people. Its not a stretch to make that association so it makes sense that others have also come up with it.
I really appreciate you mentioning the issue that psychology seems to think autism is cured by turning 18. I will never not have autism. I'm just a left-handed person getting better and better at writing with my right hand! Great analogy
On a 2007 neuropsychiatric report they mentioned that I might have been autistic as a child but wasn't as an adult. Wrong. I am diagnosed now. But nowadays most top autism professionals know that this is not true. Your symptoms could decrease but you still will have brain differences.
Excelent analysis and analogy.😂 Both my mother and her mother had their left hand caned so they could learn to become normal right handed people.🙄 Love Emily's drawing❤️👍 Thank you Peepers for sponsoring this interesting video.🥰🇨🇦 .
Oh dear that’s not kind at all. Same thing for Nina’s mother too. What a world hey? Emily’s drawing is ace! I love it too :). And more updates on the peepers soon! -Mike
@@Autistic_AF I still cringe every time I see Peepers as I used to have to raise them, kill them and freeze them to feed big snakes. Was very traumatizing everytime I had to do a "kill run". That was 40 years ago but still makes me squeamish. No idea how farmers manage🫤
I love Emily's portrait of you! Well done, Emily! And this video was so helpful. If I decide to tell my parents (in their 80s and 90s so I haven't decided ) -- now I can tell them, it's like being left-handed, and remember when that was stigmatized and "rare"? Thanks Mike -- your voice is a wonderful addition to the autistic RUclips space.
Thank you, Catherine. That's so kind of you to say. And yes, that's a great analogy for your parents should you choose to disclose to them. Thank you again for being so welcoming :) -Mike
I'm left handed and the teachers tried convincing my mom to force me to change. AlsoAdult diagnosed and I first thought "no, that's not me." Then "yes, that's def me and explains sooo much." I went through a hard time as my mother tried talking me out of it. I do get annoyed with people trying to say that "claiming" autism is fashionable. No, to me it has been disabling to live with in this society. Can you imagine being diagnosed with anything else and people saying "oh you just want attention?" I'm still careful who I tell as even doctors seem nastier if I tell them.
I think the part thats so frustrating for me about the trend of calling us fakers and saying the numbers were inflated artificially was that at roughly 6 years old, I actually figured out that my brain was wired differently and asked my parents to take me for an assessment after they explained to me what my brother's ADHD diagnosis meant. I was scolded for even having the audacity to think something was wrong with me. "These doctors only test boys," my mother said. "Girls can't get the conditions that they are testing for." And now, 20 years later, now that I know I had been lied to and denied a diagnosis and potentially life altering care, I am accused of hopping on a social media trend. People still want me to believe all the trauma I endured as a disabled child being forced to "suck it up" and "get over" my disability was my own fault and that all the failed relationships of my past were an active choice and entirely my own fault.
I so relate to your comments.Since childhood I have felt like an alien. To have someone suggest we are fakers. Yes, I faked all of this as a child because I loved being made fun of. I faked being clumsy at team sports because I just lived always being chosen last for any team. And in high school I just loved walking around outdoors at lunchtime because I wasn't a member of any group I could sit with in the cafeteria. The only part I am faking is where I've masked enough to sort of fit in.
@lorilimper5429 the first time I ever related to a character in fiction was in a movie about an alien on Earth having an identity crisis and feeling like a freak that does not belong anywhere! The first time I ever had a real friend where I felt a genuine connection was in middle school when I met a girl who was diagnosed with Aspergers as a child! My classmates used to ask my friends why I was so strange while I was standing right next to them. They used to ask the teachers if I could do a group project alone or paired up with the teacher because none of them wanted me in their group. Or ask if I could do something else in gym class so that they wouldn't have to cooperate with me. I remember I used to always be the last one left on my team in dodgeball because everyone basically forgot I was there. I must've loved being the popular girl's pet all the time! Or sitting at lunch completely alone, staring into space. It took me over 20 years just to figure out how to make small talk with my peers in a neurotypical-passing way, but I certainly must enjoy getting rejected for almost every job & housing application I have ever submitted and being told explicitly that it was because I made them uncomfortable with how weird and awkward I am. Society has already labeled me and shunned me. I already struggle to find friends, doctors, landlords, and employers who see me and respect me as a human being because of how I am. To deny me the label of "disabled" is to deny me community and answers for the suffering I have endured my entire life. Who would choose to be treated this way? There is a reason why suicide is one of the leading cause of death in autists. Nobody is choosing to be this way because its trendy. We regularly pretend we are not just to survive.
“it’s always been there…” is a deeper philosophical discussion. wanting to be different just used to not be there much. lots of layers and cultural phenomena. like left handedness why pathologize behavior so much like at all? it should all be fine - it’s not disease. so good analogy actually even though you didn’t intend it as such. define ability first. every human literally appears on a map on this type of spectrum. is a condition really there if there’s no language for it? it is but how we think of it is a ton of group think non crustal thinking med school no time or budget for innovation. it’s archaic and so frustrating how so many youtubers normalize these old ways of thinking. meanwhile our constructed environments are left undiagnosed as dysfunctional. what a waist of time it all is sorry. that’s just me or if anyone else thinks like this a bit, it’s ok to! lots of content creators have to placate to the norms with no actual innovation.
How funny. I just hit on this left-handedness analogy for myself recently, which really helps to conceptualize autism's not being mental retardation or other pathology (we never talk about "LHD"!). And now I see you struck on the same analogy. How reinforcing, thank you!
sh't man i still can't be anything but furious about the fact that my ex (born in 1996) is left-handed but forcefully learned to be right-handed like MAN WTH SHE'S LITERALLY ONLY 3 YEARS OLDER THAN ME and my now-gf is the same age and we are both AuDHD can relate too hard
Love the left-handed analogy. In 1930s/1940s Yorkshire my left handed mum was taught to write with her right hand (the 'sinister/wrong' stigma still prevailed) and much later in 1970s had to play golf right handed as couldn't afford 'specialist' left-hand clubs.
I love that people are more open about it. I was diagnosed in the 80s but ive always hid it and masked it because thats the kinda shit that gets you bullied and abused. Now people think im a genius or have some super ability that i dont have. I appreciate it
A lot of people don't get diagnosed with Autism until adulthood. For instance, I've always had special needs, but when my sister and I were kids, no one had even mentioned Autism during the 80s and 90s. I didn't receive a diagnosis until 2000, when I was in my early 20s. Except at the time, I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. It was hard to accept, at first. But now, that I'm in my mid-40s, even though it still presents challenges, I've tried to be more accepting of it. I've always had issues with hand-eye coordination and visual spatial awareness, but I've always gotten the help that I needed in school. I also had to get help with more difficult subjects, such as Math and Science, even in college. Sometimes, I still struggle with communication, and social skills. But I've done pretty well. I have a bachelor's degree, in Sociology, with Honors, I live independently, but I also live close to family, and I have many friends. I write stories, as a hobby. I've also dated and had a boyfriend. Oh, and I'm an aunt, to an adorable niece! You can be Autistic and still be fulfilled.
Very very very well done! The drawing I mean of course. Sorry that was a lame joke… I really like the analogy as it makes it easier to explain to people *cough* ignorants *cough* why all of a sudden ‘everybody’ is autistic.
It's autistic people who benefit most from awareness. Personal growth and fulfillment start with insight. Self awareness. As awareness spreads, of course diagnosis increases. That's the point of these blue ribbon autism awareness charities, campaigns and slogans, right? To help autistic people gain the recognition, accommodation and support we need to live happier, more productive lives - right? So why the controversy? The awareness campaigns are doing exactly what they are supposed to do, so diagnosis is increasing. What did the allistic expect when they started their awareness charities? The cynic in me thinks perhaps they hoped to eliminate autistic people and get rich pretending to help us. If diagnostic autism procedures and criteria are accurate and more screening takes place of course more people will receive an autism diagnosis. Are people really that clueless? Or is something darker at work here? Protecting existing therapeutic modalities and preconceptions about mental illness perhaps? Autism has no treatment other than acceptance and support. Hard to build a psychiatric or psychological practice around acceptance, accommodation and support eh? Accurate diagnosis is the correct medical assessment and determination of a condition. I was misdiagnosed as everything from "anxious" to "depressed" to "dysthymic" to "PTSD" to "Adjustment Disordered" to well, a lot of other things that were symptoms rather than root causes of my difficulties. I was given harmful advice and medications. I spent tens of thousands of dollars and wasted decades of my life in psycho-therapy. My sensory issues were ignored, because they are subjective experiences. My "overreaction" to harsh sounds and lights and touch and tastes and smells were dismissed as "irritability" and attributed to the misdiagnosed conditions they correlated with. I'm highly verbal - and social. My IQ is 2 standard deviations above the norm, but I have all sorts of subtle learning deficits related to language and quantification. I have trouble with knowing left from right, and compensate by remembering that I wear my watch on my left wrist. I've never felt "smart" because of these and other deficits, but most people only see my abilities - and as often as not, I'm resented for them. My social deficits exploited to keep me down in pecking orders. It was brutal not knowing why I struggled to gain my footing in the world. It nearly ended me at one point. But I kept on searching for an answer - and I found it: I'm autistic. Medically diagnosed. Everything makes sense now that I'm aware of my autism. Now the psychiatric and psychologic professions want nothing to do with me. The feeling is mutual I assure you.
@@user-yv6xw7ns3o There’s an old Simpsons episode set in a Psychiatrist office . Ned Flander’s Parents and a shrink are trying to figure out what’s wrong with (childhood) Ned Flanders. Seems baby Ned was an awfully rambunctious child. He’s climbing on the Psychiatrist’s bookshelf in the background and throwing his books on the floor. So the Psychiatrist shouts at him: “STOP THAT!!! Most of those books haven’t been discredited yet!!!” The episode aired during The Simpsons so-called golden age in the 90s right around the time I experienced my first severe emotional collapse as an adult. Racked by paralyzing anxiety, agoraphobia and panic attacks, and Desperate for help, I turned to my doctor. She referred me to a psychologist. I spent several years in therapy spilling my guts to what I can only describe as a power and shame based quasi-Freudian behavioral quack PHD. It was awful, and I got nowhere. Each visit cost around $100, and I saw him every week in the mid 1990s. Needless to say, he never diagnosed my autism. Nor did any of the dozen or so subsequent psychotherapists or psychiatrists I turned to over the next 25 years, trying desperately to find relief from hell of what I now know was undiagnosed level one autism. All the while, in the back of my mind, little Ned Flanders was ripping those books off of the quack shrink’s bookshelf. All the while thinking “these people have no idea what they’re doing - but there’s no alternative 😖☹️” Well 30 years after I saw that Simpsons episode, I finally have the correct answer to the question: “What’s wrong with me?” “Nothing” There’s nothing wrong with me! I’m just different. 🤓 I knew THAT all along. What a nightmare. So much pain, confusion, self blame, shame, anxiety, and depression. Such a waste of time and effort and money. I’d sue them for incompetence, but they didn’t know any better at the time. No one did. Thank god, given that the cure was worse than the disease. The standard of care for autism was still is ABA therapy. I believe we are in the midst of a revolution in psychology and psychiatry regarding neurodiversity. in life the activism and insight content like this I’m doing everything I can to “spread awareness” of autism- no matter how many sacred cows get gored in the process. “First - do no harm…” The mental health profession a lot to answer for, and they know it. They are afraid that their brutal pseudoscientific scam is coming to an end. That all of their books are about to discredited, and they’re going to have find an honest way to make living. PS: The treatment Ned is subjected too looks an awful lot like ABA therapy, and results in Ned’s overly nice, people pleasing behavior- to his detriment.
Self diagnosed at age 59 and I will only share with others whom I suspect are also diagnosed or self aware. Self awareness and the ability to share with others in this community has been such a game changer for me. It's such a relief to finally understand why I've felt like a sort of alien being since childhood. While my IQ assessments were high, I can't find something that is directly in front of me if it's not where I expect it to be. When directions say turn right I still have to say the words in my head "I write with my right hand", and imagine the pen in my hand before I know which way to turn. I've learned the art of small talk and actually enjoy it as long as it's a very short encounter because within a few minutes I run out of things to say. But also highly verbal if the topic turns to something I am interested in. Thanks for sharing your perspective.
Regarding the sharing of your diagnosis - I would have argued a couple of years ago that it's essential to disclose an autism diagnosis to receive support. Well, after a a couple of years of freely disclosing my diagnosis - which was done at Kaiser by a team of three mental health specialists, 2 of whom exclusivity specializing in autism assessment, I've changed my opinion. I have received almost zero support. Even after explaining how autism impacts my ability to read social cues and how it impacts my sensory experience of the world. There's simply too much ignorance and prejudice. Some of the worst reactions I've gotten were from people I once considered close friends. So I think you are wise to limit disclosure to people who are different like us. These are the people I've found who are supportive and understanding. Ironically, I'm considering learning how re-mask myself, lol. To learn how to script small-talk, and pretend to be normal under most social circumstances because it's not safe to be openly autistic yet. It's a real dilemma. I want to spread awareness and connect with other people on the spectrum. My openness has resulted occasionally in learning that people have autistic children, or that they are or suspect themselves to be on the spectrum. But I don't think I've gotten through to a single neurotypical person. I suspect I've upset some people on the spectrum who don't realize it, and who's masking works for them - usually because their autism / areas of monfocus hasn't socially disabled them or caused them the grief my own have. It's very frustrating, but It is what it is. I feel like I need to find a balance that doesn't alienate and "other" me while still remaining true to who I am, and enables me to survive and hopefully thrive in a world that's clueless about autism. We'd be better off if we were blind or in wheelchairs - and neurotypical - in their world. Because they'd see our limitations and struggles, and feel empathy and act more compassionately towards us. Like they do with autistic children. But we are on our own for now, and still have to hide for the most part -unfortunately. @@lorilimper5429
My mother's mother, in Danish we say "mormor" (mom's-mom), told me she was forced to write using her right hand even though she was a leftie. School was brutal before the 1950's. And exactly as you said: Cane, or in Danish: "spanskrør" (Literally "spanish reed", named after the Palm it came from, the Spanish palm - or so named in Danish anyway.)
Might be getting my private diagnosis this coming Tuesday. I was due to go next Tuesday and my daughter was going this coming Tuesday. But this weekend she caught covid so we may get swapped around. Shall find out on Monday. Great drawing by Emily. 👍🏻 Mike, you often remind me of the animated character Murdoc from the Gorillaz music video's. The artist who draws those could do a great drawing of you I'd imagine. 🙂
Paul, good luck tomorrow/today (depending when you read this). I hope all goes well for you and you’ve planned something pleasant for yourself for afterwards. Murdoc 😅😂😂😂 thank you, I think! 😎 :)
@@Autistic_AF All done and I'm now officially diagnosed at 53, I'm 54 in just a few weeks time. Just confirmation for what I've thought for the last 20 odd years anyway. He said I scored very highly and was impressed how I keep it so well hidden. I had masking down to a fine art from an early age. I did well at school, left with high grades etc, apart from being the quiet kid there was nothing really obvious to set me apart as being different. He was impressed at my methods for circumnavigating around autism and still managing to become one of the UKs top selling artists. All in all a good day's results. 🙂
Stumbled into a conversation on Twitter yesterday with a longtime friend about the increase in dx's of all things neurodivrgnt. We're both of the belief that ultimately it's not "more" people being diagnosed, it's more issues being recognized... and then the convo inevitably turned towards those who would still be with us, had their "wiring differences" been discovered and accommodated properly. Medicine and diagnostic standards never work fast enough for society. Sorry. Didn't mean to be a Debbie downer here or anything, but it's a thought I haven't been able to stop thinking about since....
Another great video. Im late to the diagnosis. Ive worked in highly productive creative industries, Ive noticed that southpaws have a great creative way at looking at the world and problem solving, the same as us. I love working or socialising with anyone who brings something different to the table. At the risk of sounding ubermensch, there are ways in which all types of divergent and different minds push forward the collective consciousness. We look in on the world, are confused by it and bring forward a dfferent veiw. In part simply to help us navigate it. The majority of folk seem happy to to skip through the meadow of conformity. Oh no, Im a fake, I cant possibly be ASD. I just used a metaphor, Im not robot enough.
This is the same thing with trans people, it is wild how many people don't get this. AAAH sad. When I was younger they tried to have me be right handed but I just wouldn't do it. Even after the stigma the idea of being right-handed was still attempted.
In the 1960s my father went to a Catholic elementary school. He was physically struck by the nuns if he used his left hand to write. He talked about it all his life, it’s a large part of why he left the church. If he’d lived long enough I think he would’ve figured out that he was autistic, too. (Edit- I originally stated “if he used his right hand to write,” I meant “if he used his left hand to write.”)
No insult intended here, but only history. (My special interest.) During research for some of my other projects, I found a VERY interesting article that you can look up online. (Understand that the word "idiot" (along with moron and imbecile) at the time meant various diagnosis-levels of IQ.) This article is titled "A Chapter on Idiots” in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Vol. IX No. XLIX (June 1854), 101-104. Some of the descriptions about the child's lack of eye-contact are rather familiar. These children were apparently often institutionalized and taught a trade if possible. There is no way to accurately know the number of cases at that time. Not only was there no differentiation yet between autism and intellectual disability, but roughly 400 children per 1000 died before their 5th birthday in 1850. Children who had any type of challenge probably would have been even more vulnerable, and some might not have lived long enough to really show much difference in their reactions.
It upsets me how many people take this rise in diagnostics to be a "trend." I got very upset by a woman my own age with an early diagnosed daughter with higher support needs. She claimed that my diagnosis at age 39 was part of a tiktok trend and that I wasn't valid since my "differences" aren't "deficiencies" (even though i have an OFFICIAL diagnosis and i didn't even know what tiktok was at that time!!) and these older neurotypicals think late diagnosed adults are just faking it for attention because we weren't as easy to find as her daughter's diagnosis. It really pissed me off and I had a meltdown trying to explain it to my friends who kept being on the mother's side.
As someone who's entered the discussion as a caregiver (and it's unknown whether or not I'm NT, tbh, I fall in that "mother with some autistic traits" category at the very least), I've been struck by how many parents of higher needs people on the spectrum do a lot of gatekeeping and manage to center themselves and their experiences in the discussion. Having watched people engaging in challenging caregiving duties in other situations...it was very obvious to me that the experiences of the caregiver and the person receiving caregiving are quite different, and the former is not always clear on the experiences of the latter. This is especially true when the person being cared for has communication challenges. You not inconveniencing the person you were talking to in the manner she associates with her own caregiving duties doesn't mean that you're not autistic. I can see so many things in my (grown, diagnosed as a young adult) autistic kid that were passed off as other issues when said child was younger, but there was a general awareness that the kid had atypical reactions and issues in many areas. We just didn't describe it as autism.
If you reverse this for them then it shows them. Lots of NT people are special needs just do extremely low IQ. My wife works with kids like that just tying to teach them basic life skills that everyone takes for granted. They aren't on spectrum just low IQ. So reversing it would be telling the that woman she can't be NT as extremely disable people only NT and she being NT is just a attention ploy because she has an average IQ or better. It was my wife that pointed this out me as she works with special needs kids which includes both one spectrum and not on spectrum kids, there's more NT special needs kids that ND ones. Which makes sense based on number NT people vs ND people. Just being on spectrum does not mean you are disabled but the society might not be ideal for you function in. Still there would be special needs people that need support in same way there are with NT people.
social media / content creators do make it feel like a trend. more and more behaviors are constantly being pathologized. i struggle in all the ways even if i think it’s just human but for me it’s very natural to question things more. like the word official just as much as the word trend for example. it all gets to be very silly to me. we all know what comes easy or not so easy. we all want to belong. i just don’t get what diagnostics does that is good. it’s not positive. it’s not disease. it’s behavior based. very relative culturally. and in response to so many shitty systems.
I got told by one parent that my diagnosis cheapened the diagnosis of autism. I understand that her daughter has a hard life. I don't claim that I have the same level of difficulty. But I do think that my level of distress warrants diagnosis.
My grandmother (born 1914) was forced to write right handed and was hit on left hand. She was top student at school and could mirror write. I am ASDADHD
When you say not so long ago, you mean as early on as the 1980s here in US. I was born left handed, and then school happened. I was forced to use my right for everything, irrespective of the way I may of felt about it. It's a horrifying abuse, though I cannot say all of this without pointing out the irony of the situation. As a direct result of my handedness being changed, my natural aptitude for ambidextrous activities is higher than the norm. Yet, I am left to wonder what in my life may of been different without the conversion. Anything is possible I suppose.
The way I thought he'd mentioned autism in the starting skit and was like "it'd be so funny if he did this, but was actually talking about left handedness" and didn't realise that he actually hadn't stated they were talking about autism and I must have misheard,,, and he was actually doing the skit I thought would be funny but unfortunately it wasn't the direction he chose,,,, but he did,, I love it,, one braincell, truly
In my family both being left handed and neurodivergent are the norm...I wonder if any research has connected the 2 after all they are both inherited in the main...?
Oooooo, interesting. Nina's side of the family are left handed too, predominantly. But, not neurodivergent at all. It's an interesting thought, isn't it? -Mike
Hi! I really like your videos. Would you consider doing a video about the possible connection between food and autism? I've read a book called A User Guide to the GF/CF Diet for Autism, Asperger Syndrome and AD/HD, by Luke Jackson, and I'd like to know your opinion and the viewers' opinions about it. Thank you!
I think there are enough people with an autism diagnosis now for us to create our own sovereign nation. We'll call it "Autismia", and Info Dumping will be our official national sport. 😅
I know isn’t the point of the video, we lived for a year in China and people was chocked that we haven’t corrected my daughter left handiness. She went to the school there for a few months and it was a complication to have her because at first they sit her at the right side of the double table so, when writing, she collided with the kid at her left side… in a classroom with 50+ children having kids with accommodations needs can be challenging 😥😥
Probably because of trauma. C-PTSD (Complex PTSD) basically comorbid symptoms of autism, and also ADHD. I wasn't born with autism or ADHD, but I could fool anyone with the way I present myself. I describe myself like a feral yet timid animal in captivity, that even after all these years, still remains feral. My nervous system is completely separate from my thinking. I can't/won't seek help because I don't trust anyone (being feral) I just isolate and use drugs/coping mechanisms. I'm almost 40 years old. What a bullshit existence.
I doubt it. My parents were health food fanatics. All the food we ate was organic. I still had problems as a child and I am diagnosed with autism. Interestingly, my autistic nephew did get very angry when he ate red dye #40 according to my sister in law. She restricted my nephew from eating it. There is not much evidence to support the dye causing autism but some autistic people might react badly to it.
I think there will come a time when we will half to retire the term neurotypical as the variety of brain differences become more noticed. If there is some sort of environmental factor creating an epigenetic phenomenon that manifests as spectrum disorders, what we know today as neurotypicals may slowly become an endangered breed of human.
But it isn't because everyone is autistic. It is because there are so many ways that the brain can be different. Autism, mental health issues, epilepsy, intellectual disabilities, traumatic brain injuries, etc. etc.
I’ll take the slightly dissident view here although I mostly agree. We can understand the spectrum as incredibly wide and acknowledge that. However, conflating Elon musk or Jerry Seinfeld as being in any material way similar to my non verbal and self harming child is awful and leads to fundamental misunderstandings of what life for extreme cases actually looks like. Barely any research (I think 6%) is done on severely disabled autistic people. That’s a huge problem. Studying the somewhat socially awkward kid who likes to eat the same thing everyday is unlikely to help me or my child in any real way. The question became, do you lump everyone together (lumper), or split them up (splitter) and approach them differently? I’m a splitter because I think it will lead to better research and outcomes for the most vulnerable. (edited* limp to lump. lumper/splitter)
Hi Brooke, thanks for checking out my channel. I am very sorry to hear your child is self harming. I hope your situation improves in the future. Take care, -Mike
This definitely hits home; another analogy I could name is queerness. The feeling of rejection, lack of acceptance and safety, the awareness that there are people around out there to kill and torture you, and having to deal with prejudice and dehumanization, isolation, depression, not being able to get the support you need... I know it as an autistic person and I know it as a trans woman. Both have a lot in common. The resistance and building communities is also common, on the other hand. Spreading knowledge and awareness, making a change in the world around us, supporting each other.
I believe the prevalence of Autism is far higher than any of these studies suggest. I believe at least a rate of 1 in 25, if not higher in the general populace. I can't back this up with any data, just my own personal experience & observations.
Such a great video, thank you!! I was lucky enough to get diagnosed at 31 on public healthcare during a very brief window when they were still offering adult evaluations. My partner, on the same healthcare 2 years later, doesn't have this option since they no longer offer adult evaluations. He will need to pursue a private evaluation out of pocket eventually. My Dad is working towards getting his evaluation. Looking back, we are all pretty sure now that my grandfather's diagnosed "deafness" was actually undiagnosed autism. Raising public and medical provider awareness means the world to us! Thank you for your videos!!
The key word here is everyone. Everyone is weird. Everyone is different. Therefore, by that logic and technicality, autistics are not weird and different. They fit in the puzzle properly
Everyone is different but autistic people are usually more so. I have been told my whole life that I am weird. People have asked me why I can't be more normal. I was left out when most other children were not because I was too strange. So sure, everyone is different. But some of us are extra different.
Congratulations, Cathy. ADOS scores are 15-60. Less than 30 is essentially not autistic. I don’t think 12 is a possible score, but I could be wrong. Was this a typo? Take care and congratulations again! -Mike 🧡
Please HELP me!! I'm BEGGING you to listen! I am 40, I've been HF autistic my whole life, very HF because I have a very high IQ so the mask held on through 30......yes THIRTY, self-deletion attempts, now I have been STOIC for 7 years since my last, I have NOBODY, I am HF Austistic and the more videoes I watch the more hopeless I am becoming because I REALIZE I am in hell and the odds are so against me! I haven't had the energy to make a post, since I understood who I am, I have been drained of everything, I need support. I have been TORTURED by neurotypical doctors my whole life. Drugged over and over for everythin, then told my backstabbing neurotypical psychiatrist of SIX years, yeah I'm autistic but she didn't want to tell me because there's no "CURE" like I needed to be drugged for BS diagnosis some more! I left her when she said CURE because WE don't need to be cured. This is a cry for help to any autistic people. I've been masking since I was 17 and now I'm 40 and the toll of going undiagnosed has cost me my left hand! I don't have the strength or energy to explain this. In all honesty I am going to repost this because I NEED GUIDENCE PLEASE! My mask is dead, I am in stasis mode, it took 3 days just to write this! Please give me numbers and advice! Thank you all...
I am not a healthcare professional or psychotherapist. If you feel that you need immediate mental health support, please see the list of mental health helplines at HelpGuide.org here: www.helpguide.org/find-help.htm
@@Autistic_AF Thank you. I have been practically paralyzed for 3 days just in shutdown mode, I literally couldn't even type a comment. This is helpful. Thank you so much, I love your videos! They helped me so much.
I am sure, it should be separated for people that just different and people that have disadvantage in life. not calling all of them autistic, it is bullshit
You have to be experiencing difficulty in your life due to autism to get diagnosed with autism. 80+ percent of autistic people aren't working. The 15 to 20% that do work often have difficulties keeping their job, major problems socializing, problems with executive functioning or other problems. Sometimes problems aren't that obvious to other people. That doesn't mean that no problems exist. To diagnose autism it has to be more than a difference. People can act more functional than they are.
i think diagnosis would significantly go down (on asd and many things) but only as much as hate, capitalism, baby boomer thinking, phone usage, group think youtube level didactic creators, black and white thinking toward neurology goes down.
Absolutely excellent comparisons here. Left handedness being seen as wrong, not different. Similar with the corrective efforts of society to conform behaviors to the majority making it seem like there were less cases back then...
And now for some fun facts because I came here to the comment section to talk about myself... I'm left handed. Just like autism, I inherited this trait from my father. He lived in the era where they corrected it out of you and his handwriting was unbelievably sloppy which may have been, in part, a side effect of these unnecessary corrections. By the time I was in school they had stopped trying to correct left-handedness but they did still try to correct how you held your writing tools.
I use all of my fingers to write and they tried to make me use three fingers with a triangle that you could slip onto your writing utensil.
Never adapted.
I've never managed to develop a "proper" tripod grip either. I'm ambidextrous, but was "encouraged to choose a hand" to write with at school - obviously my right hand was preferred by the teachers! When I learn a new skill, I still switch hands when I get tired/ need a break
JENN! Fascinating story, thank you. I didn’t realise you were a leftie. I’m meeting so many now in the comments - I wonder if it’s correlated with neurodivergence??
Apparently left handedness is higher in neurodivergent people
Makes sense if right vs left brain dominance
I was ambidextrous & in grade 1 my teacher told me I'm not allowed to be, I had to pick a hand. She told me the correct hand to pick was the right, because otherwise I'd never be able to use scissors lol.
My OT told me that my five finger death grip on my pen is due to low muscle tone, which autistics are prone to.
My mom was a Special Ed Teacher in Canada. Back in the 80's, the vast majority of kids that got Autism Diagnoses had a least some intellectual disability, or issues with their verbal communication. Without those impairments, kids who were probably autistic were instead being diagnosed with things like OCD, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, or in the case of most girls, Borderline Personality, Eating Disorders, or even Bipolar. Those who were in the higher IQ range, even gifted, never got an Autism Diagnosis, they mostly got labeled with Depression or Anxiety, if a problem was noticed at all. Meltdowns and overwhelm were seen as just "behavioural issues", that needed to be addressed with a discipline plan or "tough love", or were the result of permissive/weak parenting. The Majority of those who were seen as being advance learners (if difficulties were acknowledged at all) were instead saddled with being told they were "not living up to their potential", "choosing to be picky or difficult", or having some other weakness of character.
I am no expert, but it seems like a lot of ASD people my age had to suffer in silence, and the expansion of what autism looks like in the 90's and 00's can only be a good thing, and seeing a lot more diagnoses can only be a good thing too. Treating the wrong thing, or letting people grow up with harmful labels probably creates more of a problem for those who missed identification in their school years, than if nothing had been done at all, IMHO. I COULD have lived my life with my right hand tied behind my back, and learn to use my left; but my dexterity, handwriting, and ability to be creative would never live up to what it is having grown up using my dominate hand. I think that is a good analogy of what has happened for a lot of late-diagnosed adults, and why seen a massive uptick in new cases is really just such a positive thing!
This is the best description of what I faced growing up in the 70s and 80s as an intellectually gifted but undiagnosed autistic/ADHD person.
Thank you.
Found out at age 40 and was depressed as a teenager in the early 90's.
Left-handedness - what a great analogy. Thanks
Thanks, Fred - good to see you again :) -Mike
I was explaining ASD as a difference, not deficiency, to my sister the other day and she made the left-handed analogy, I was like wow actually yes
I also like to point out that the 10% prevalence of left handedness is roughly in the same digits as that of ADHD.
I've heard the Left-handedness about 10 times on RUclips with regard to LGBTQIA+
People who don't get it: you only got diagnosed with autism so you could feel special. Same people: so everyone's autistic now
My ADHD kicked in, I was out here furiously Googling "is Oprah autistic" before finishing the intro clip 😂
I knew someone would! Hahaha. 🤣
Well for anyone about to Google it I am back to report I found nothing about Oprah being autistic
@@Autistic_AF got me too! 🤣
My audhd kicked in. Not only did I search for it immediately, I refused to accept that this could have been a joke so I went on a 20-minute wild goose chase before I gave up trying to find a connection that just doesn't seem to be there.
Meanwhile I forgot to take my morning meds, and flat-out forgot to brush my teeth, because the search interrupted my morning routine, which it wouldn't have, if I had only needed to listen to the video.
you made it further than me, i was confused about the graph so i paused at 0:13 to reverse image search it and spoiled myself on the joke
Oh heck! I’m here early, lol
I’m diagnosed autistic now because when I was young, the diagnosticians only thought that white boys were autistic.
And I’m also left handed 🤣
Hey Crafty! 🌱vegan 🌱 - how's it going? You know even today there are plenty of doctors who think that only young white boys can be autistic. It's still very much a problem! And yay for being left handed hahaha :)
As a sinister person self-diagnosed with autism, the analogy resonates. We lefties do have to work to fit into a right handed world, and, if you regularly use tools, it can be tiring and uncomfortable (for example, saw dust gets blown into your face instead of away).
I didn’t consider that! Thanks for sharing :) 🪵
lefties are more fun! i hate coffee mugs where if i grip it with my left hand, the picture faces inwards...i'm stubborn, so i'll burn my hand just to grip it wrong and show off my ironic mug!
"Everyone is getting diagnosed." No, no they're not. So many people are missed.
Yeah all those missed lefties! 🤚
Yep. 3% of the population is not everyone.
I didn’t say so in my earlier comment, because I just fired off without watching the whole thing so the algorithm would hopefully like this video, but I am very impressed with the picture that Emily drew! She did an amazing job of it
And those peeps are so cute and fluffy 🥰
Awwwww, thank you @CraftVegan. If it works, that would be great! And yeah - Emily's picture is really good! It took her 15 mins apparently. And she's 12. I couldn't draw that good if I took 15 days, and I'm 42! 🐣🐣🐣🐤🐥🐥 the peeps are all pets, and it's Nina's project really - but I'll show off how they're doing in the future! -Mike
@@Autistic_AF that’s so sweet about the peeps! I’ve heard they make amazingly affectionate pets, but I can’t keep any where I live. For some reason it’s frowned upon to keep chickens in a an apartment lol
I can’t draw anymore, although I could when I was younger, but my spouse is very artistic and so is my oldest kiddo
@@CraftyVeganIt is possible to keep a couple of quails - they’re nearly noise free, and can get very tame when handled! ❤
It’s actually because of channels like yours. We finally have access to the answer key.
Well, I'm working very hard at becoming autistic. I have the traits. They're easy. I've had them since I was an infant. But the diagnosis eludes me. I must be the attention seeking self diagnosed pretender that people are worried about.
( joke) 😂😂😂 but true too! 😅😢😂😂
That first line you wrote killed me, lmao. Good luck to us in becoming autistic! 😌
so what is the point of diagnosis exactly ?
@chinmeysway It can help you get accommodations. Legally, schools and some other places are supposed to accommodate disabilities.
Also, I believe you could have some condition that may need treatment. Ideally, you'll be able to find out what it is and get treated.
Finally, the diagnosis procedure might give you data about your strengths and weaknesses. This will lead to greater self understanding.
This is just my thoughts about it. Could be more info or different info.
@@loverainthunder In many places there are not a lot accommodations for autism.
@@Catlily5 You're right.
Finally, a video with hot chicks at the end.
Definitely worth the peep show! Ha.
Also... I loved your sponsors at the end. The market loves adorable things. And tell Emily I want a portrait too now! Emily, you are very talented.
I will! :)
Wow. I literally just used this as an analogy, talking to my partner. You have explained it very well and that is very clever bringing in the study. Sending this on to him. Thanks for this! (and… even in this day and age, I ended up right handed even though it is not really naturally for me).
Both of my grandmothers were aghast at having a left-handed grandchild (me), and my mother did stop the more adamant one from 'converting me'.. the other just did her best at selling me on the idea of being ambidextrous, which I agree has been very handy several times in life. Autism wasn't recognized at the time, along with a whole group of parenting practices seen as normal today.
I worked on some bureaucratic processes with a man recently diagnosed, and he kept mentioning his Autism as the reason for this or that. I hope I didn't put him off by describing 2-3 things he could do to work around his anxiety levels (all the good steps he'd already taken being the main one).
I understand most things in hierarchies of very specific details, and find it easier to bridge the differences by joking "'Can't see the forest for the trees?? I'm your LEAF specialist!" Not mentioning any labels seems to avoid some of the irritation others can feel at things not going as they expected.
0:13 *immediately* recognized the graph as left-handedness statistics lol
There’s an old Simpsons episode set in a Psychiatrist office . Ned Flander’s Parents and a shrink are trying to figure out what’s wrong with (childhood) Ned Flanders. Seems baby Ned was an awfully rambunctious child. He’s climbing on the Psychiatrist’s bookshelf in the background and throwing his books on the floor. So the Psychiatrist shouts at him:
“STOP THAT!!! Most of those books haven’t been discredited yet!!!”
The episode aired during The Simpsons so-called golden age in the 90s right around the time I experienced my first severe emotional collapse as an adult. Racked by paralyzing anxiety, agoraphobia and panic attacks, and Desperate for help, I turned to my doctor. She referred me to a psychologist. I spent several years in therapy spilling my guts to what I can only describe as a power and shame based quasi-Freudian behavioral quack PHD. It was awful, and I got nowhere. Each visit cost around $100, and I saw him every week in the mid 1990s. Needless to say, he never diagnosed my autism. Nor did any of the dozen or so subsequent psychotherapists or psychiatrists I turned to over the next 25 years, trying desperately to find relief from hell of what I now know was undiagnosed level one autism.
All the while, in the back of my mind, little Ned Flanders was ripping those books off of the quack shrink’s bookshelf. All the while thinking “these people have no idea what they’re doing - but there’s no alternative 😖☹️”
Well 30 years after I saw that Simpsons episode, I finally have the correct answer to the question:
“What’s wrong with me?”
“Nothing”
There’s nothing wrong with me! I’m just different. 🤓
I knew THAT all along. What a nightmare. So much pain, confusion, self blame, shame, anxiety, and depression. Such a waste of time and effort and money. I’d sue them for incompetence, but they didn’t know any better at the time.
No one did.
Thank god, given that the cure was worse than the disease. The standard of care for autism was still is ABA therapy.
I believe we are in the midst of a revolution in psychology and psychiatry regarding neurodiversity. Thanks to the activism and insight of content like this. I’m doing everything I can to “spread awareness” of autism- no matter how many sacred cows get gored in the process.
“First - do no harm…”
The mental health profession a lot to answer for, and they know it. They are afraid that their brutal pseudoscientific scam is coming to an end. That all of their books are about to discredited, and they’re going to have find an honest way to make living.
PS: The treatment Ned is subjected too looks an awful lot like ABA therapy. He’s spanked repeatedly for no reason, and eventually, he breaks. This results in Ned’s overly religious, overly nice, people pleasing behavior as an adult. Much to his detriment.
Oh, and Ned Flanders is left handed 🤓😉
Thank you for the video. In Australia it is very expensive to get a formal diagnosis as an adult and it is not covered by Medicare (our version of the NHS) or even private medical insurance. I was super privileged to get an opportunity after being on a wait list for months, but I was told to expect a wait of 12 or 18 months or more. It is only because my now ex partner (we have recently separated) found an article and survey that seem to indicate there were some flags to indicate this and the troubles we were having. Since then I have been formally diagnosed with ASD (mostly level 1, but 2 in some areas like relationships) and OCD just before my 45 birthday. It is a strange feeling as there is a mix of relief and grief of some of the difficulties I have faced in my life and if I had only had the support earlier.
This was fantastic. Really great analogy. Thank-you Mike.
The drawing of you is beautiful!
Thank you, Nancy! I agree, Emily is very talented!
🙌 😭😅perhaps trendy these days, both the left-handedness and autism…cool analogy yes!
I wish someone told me how cool I was when I was younger haha.
@@Autistic_AF Yes, you are cool! Also, younger than somebody for sure (there is a 103 woman chatting intelligently and energetically on YT, and I am sure you are younger ), so it must count. Idea and presentation overall was cool. Easy to hear voice. 🐈
@@Autistic_AFYou just hadn't found the right people.
My Moms Brother was apparently beat until he use his Right hand. He was put in Special Ed when growing up in school.
The comparison to left handedness only goes so far. I have medium support needs. Even society accepting autism and supporting me better will not make me completely functional. I definitely think that we should advocate for society to accommodate us. But for me I will still have problems functioning.
I am currently undergoing evaluation for late diagnosis of autism. I wanted to comment on whether "curing" handedness can be compared to ABA . I did not fit the criteria of autism when I was a child, but I was ambidextrous. Even though changing left handed kids into right handed ones was stopped because it is cruel and traumatic, there was still one category of kids that were subjected to forcing handedness, kids that could write with both hands. I was forced to write with one hand. It was worse than the bullying I endured. I have a strong reaction to ABA because of this. I think I have PTSD from being forced to write with one hand.
kids are STILL being subjected to this form of "therapy" by practitioners of ABA if the child is autistic. It was a marginal practice when I endured it decades ago because it is unnecessarily cruel. But it is okay to do it to autistic kids.
My man! 🙌
The left-handedness graph is similar to many things right now, especially in invisible aspects of neurodivergence and other forms including transness. We are seeing an increase in trans people coming out because there is more access to care for us and public awareness.
As an self-diagnosed autistic(w/officially diagnosed ADHD and TBI) and trans person, this graph describes so many of my identities.
My dad, born in 1944, was actually forced to use his right hand to write. So it was a lot more recent than Victorian times that right-handed ABA happened.
Thanks for sharing. So interesting. I’ve since learned that Nina’s mother had similar. I hope it’s not happening anywhere any longer!
@Nagito_Komaeda Dude, sorry :/
🥹Comment to Emily : What a cool drawing Emily! // Btw: The chicks are adorable 🥰.
I think Emily’s happy with all the kind words! :)
@@Autistic_AF 😊
The numbers in Korea were surprising when first reported, but the stigma makes it a challenge for parents to even want to seek formal diagnosis to provide support to their children. And some of the older generation still insist on ABA therapy for left-handedness here. It was still in practice in some places just ten years ago. u.u
Always love the left-handedness comparison!
I’m new! I thought I was being original :)
@@Autistic_AF To be fair, I'm not sure if I've heard it so much re: "rising autism rates" as much as other "rising rates of other things that are just being more accepted" (like I've heard trans people compare that with it) and I never made the ABA connection - you did a great job with it!
@@Emileigggggh Oh hahahaha! Thank you! 🙏
Nice, left handedness is the analogy that I use as well when discussing autism with people. Its not a stretch to make that association so it makes sense that others have also come up with it.
I really appreciate you mentioning the issue that psychology seems to think autism is cured by turning 18. I will never not have autism. I'm just a left-handed person getting better and better at writing with my right hand! Great analogy
You too, Carin - "I'm just a left handed person getting better at writing with my right hand" ... sums it up perfectly! -Mike
On a 2007 neuropsychiatric report they mentioned that I might have been autistic as a child but wasn't as an adult. Wrong. I am diagnosed now.
But nowadays most top autism professionals know that this is not true. Your symptoms could decrease but you still will have brain differences.
The peeps and the picture that was drawn were both excellent!
Is it possible that neurodiversity is a spectrum or complex system of sorts, and that there is no "normal"?
Nice drawing!
Excelent analysis and analogy.😂
Both my mother and her mother had their left hand caned so they could learn to become normal right handed people.🙄
Love Emily's drawing❤️👍
Thank you Peepers for sponsoring this interesting video.🥰🇨🇦
.
Oh dear that’s not kind at all. Same thing for Nina’s mother too. What a world hey? Emily’s drawing is ace! I love it too :). And more updates on the peepers soon! -Mike
@@Autistic_AF I still cringe every time I see Peepers as I used to have to raise them, kill them and freeze them to feed big snakes. Was very traumatizing everytime I had to do a "kill run". That was 40 years ago but still makes me squeamish. No idea how farmers manage🫤
Thank you for an entertaining video with great content! I am left handed and autistic!
I love Emily's portrait of you! Well done, Emily! And this video was so helpful. If I decide to tell my parents (in their 80s and 90s so I haven't decided ) -- now I can tell them, it's like being left-handed, and remember when that was stigmatized and "rare"?
Thanks Mike -- your voice is a wonderful addition to the autistic RUclips space.
Thank you, Catherine. That's so kind of you to say. And yes, that's a great analogy for your parents should you choose to disclose to them. Thank you again for being so welcoming :) -Mike
Yes! Great analogy. And chicks! You have quite the menagerie over there, Mike!
Cheers, Jason! It was lovely to catch up chatting about ☕️ coffee beans! 🫘
I'm left handed and the teachers tried convincing my mom to force me to change. AlsoAdult diagnosed and I first thought "no, that's not me." Then "yes, that's def me and explains sooo much." I went through a hard time as my mother tried talking me out of it. I do get annoyed with people trying to say that "claiming" autism is fashionable. No, to me it has been disabling to live with in this society. Can you imagine being diagnosed with anything else and people saying "oh you just want attention?" I'm still careful who I tell as even doctors seem nastier if I tell them.
Great video!😁
I think the part thats so frustrating for me about the trend of calling us fakers and saying the numbers were inflated artificially was that at roughly 6 years old, I actually figured out that my brain was wired differently and asked my parents to take me for an assessment after they explained to me what my brother's ADHD diagnosis meant.
I was scolded for even having the audacity to think something was wrong with me. "These doctors only test boys," my mother said. "Girls can't get the conditions that they are testing for."
And now, 20 years later, now that I know I had been lied to and denied a diagnosis and potentially life altering care, I am accused of hopping on a social media trend. People still want me to believe all the trauma I endured as a disabled child being forced to "suck it up" and "get over" my disability was my own fault and that all the failed relationships of my past were an active choice and entirely my own fault.
I so relate to your comments.Since childhood I have felt like an alien. To have someone suggest we are fakers. Yes, I faked all of this as a child because I loved being made fun of. I faked being clumsy at team sports because I just lived always being chosen last for any team. And in high school I just loved walking around outdoors at lunchtime because I wasn't a member of any group I could sit with in the cafeteria. The only part I am faking is where I've masked enough to sort of fit in.
@lorilimper5429 the first time I ever related to a character in fiction was in a movie about an alien on Earth having an identity crisis and feeling like a freak that does not belong anywhere! The first time I ever had a real friend where I felt a genuine connection was in middle school when I met a girl who was diagnosed with Aspergers as a child!
My classmates used to ask my friends why I was so strange while I was standing right next to them. They used to ask the teachers if I could do a group project alone or paired up with the teacher because none of them wanted me in their group. Or ask if I could do something else in gym class so that they wouldn't have to cooperate with me. I remember I used to always be the last one left on my team in dodgeball because everyone basically forgot I was there. I must've loved being the popular girl's pet all the time! Or sitting at lunch completely alone, staring into space. It took me over 20 years just to figure out how to make small talk with my peers in a neurotypical-passing way, but I certainly must enjoy getting rejected for almost every job & housing application I have ever submitted and being told explicitly that it was because I made them uncomfortable with how weird and awkward I am. Society has already labeled me and shunned me. I already struggle to find friends, doctors, landlords, and employers who see me and respect me as a human being because of how I am. To deny me the label of "disabled" is to deny me community and answers for the suffering I have endured my entire life. Who would choose to be treated this way? There is a reason why suicide is one of the leading cause of death in autists. Nobody is choosing to be this way because its trendy. We regularly pretend we are not just to survive.
@@LilChuunosuke Exactly.
❤ Awesome picture! Congratulations on your peep babies, too!❤
Thank you! 🤗
Awwwwww! A hat full of peeps! Even without such adorable sponsors, this was super informative. Love your take on everything.
“it’s always been there…” is a deeper philosophical discussion. wanting to be different just used to not be there much. lots of layers and cultural phenomena. like left handedness why pathologize behavior so much like at all? it should all be fine - it’s not disease. so good analogy actually even though you didn’t intend it as such. define ability first. every human literally appears on a map on this type of spectrum. is a condition really there if there’s no language for it? it is but how we think of it is a ton of group think non crustal thinking med school no time or budget for innovation. it’s archaic and so frustrating how so many youtubers normalize these old ways of thinking. meanwhile our constructed environments are left undiagnosed as dysfunctional. what a waist of time it all is sorry. that’s just me or if anyone else thinks like this a bit, it’s ok to! lots of content creators have to placate to the norms with no actual innovation.
Another excellent video. Great drawing of you too. 😊 oooh lots of chick chicks awww squeeze!
Hey Rose! Thank you. Yes, I thought that drawing was really good! And the peeps are so peepy -Mike
How funny. I just hit on this left-handedness analogy for myself recently, which really helps to conceptualize autism's not being mental retardation or other pathology (we never talk about "LHD"!). And now I see you struck on the same analogy. How reinforcing, thank you!
Some of us prefer the shadows... it's way too br8ght out there
sh't man i still can't be anything but furious about the fact that my ex (born in 1996) is left-handed but forcefully learned to be right-handed like MAN WTH SHE'S LITERALLY ONLY 3 YEARS OLDER THAN ME and my now-gf is the same age and we are both AuDHD can relate too hard
Love the left-handed analogy. In 1930s/1940s Yorkshire my left handed mum was taught to write with her right hand (the 'sinister/wrong' stigma still prevailed) and much later in 1970s had to play golf right handed as couldn't afford 'specialist' left-hand clubs.
I love that people are more open about it. I was diagnosed in the 80s but ive always hid it and masked it because thats the kinda shit that gets you bullied and abused. Now people think im a genius or have some super ability that i dont have. I appreciate it
A lot of people don't get diagnosed with Autism until adulthood. For instance, I've always had special needs, but when my sister and I were kids, no one had even mentioned Autism during the 80s and 90s. I didn't receive a diagnosis until 2000, when I was in my early 20s. Except at the time, I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. It was hard to accept, at first. But now, that I'm in my mid-40s, even though it still presents challenges, I've tried to be more accepting of it.
I've always had issues with hand-eye coordination and visual spatial awareness, but I've always gotten the help that I needed in school. I also had to get help with more difficult subjects, such as Math and Science, even in college. Sometimes, I still struggle with communication, and social skills. But I've done pretty well. I have a bachelor's degree, in Sociology, with Honors, I live independently, but I also live close to family, and I have many friends. I write stories, as a hobby. I've also dated and had a boyfriend. Oh, and I'm an aunt, to an adorable niece! You can be Autistic and still be fulfilled.
Very very very well done! The drawing I mean of course.
Sorry that was a lame joke… I really like the analogy as it makes it easier to explain to people *cough* ignorants *cough* why all of a sudden ‘everybody’ is autistic.
🤓😂
It's autistic people who benefit most from awareness. Personal growth and fulfillment start with insight. Self awareness. As awareness spreads, of course diagnosis increases. That's the point of these blue ribbon autism awareness charities, campaigns and slogans, right? To help autistic people gain the recognition, accommodation and support we need to live happier, more productive lives - right?
So why the controversy? The awareness campaigns are doing exactly what they are supposed to do, so diagnosis is increasing. What did the allistic expect when they started their awareness charities? The cynic in me thinks perhaps they hoped to eliminate autistic people and get rich pretending to help us.
If diagnostic autism procedures and criteria are accurate and more screening takes place of course more people will receive an autism diagnosis. Are people really that clueless? Or is something darker at work here? Protecting existing therapeutic modalities and preconceptions about mental illness perhaps? Autism has no treatment other than acceptance and support.
Hard to build a psychiatric or psychological practice around acceptance, accommodation and support eh?
Accurate diagnosis is the correct medical assessment and determination of a condition. I was misdiagnosed as everything from "anxious" to "depressed" to "dysthymic" to "PTSD" to "Adjustment Disordered" to well, a lot of other things that were symptoms rather than root causes of my difficulties. I was given harmful advice and medications. I spent tens of thousands of dollars and wasted decades of my life in psycho-therapy. My sensory issues were ignored, because they are subjective experiences. My "overreaction" to harsh sounds and lights and touch and tastes and smells were dismissed as "irritability" and attributed to the misdiagnosed conditions they correlated with.
I'm highly verbal - and social. My IQ is 2 standard deviations above the norm, but I have all sorts of subtle learning deficits related to language and quantification. I have trouble with knowing left from right, and compensate by remembering that I wear my watch on my left wrist. I've never felt "smart" because of these and other deficits, but most people only see my abilities - and as often as not, I'm resented for them. My social deficits exploited to keep me down in pecking orders.
It was brutal not knowing why I struggled to gain my footing in the world. It nearly ended me at one point. But I kept on searching for an answer - and I found it:
I'm autistic. Medically diagnosed. Everything makes sense now that I'm aware of my autism. Now the psychiatric and psychologic professions want nothing to do with me.
The feeling is mutual I assure you.
I absolutely relate to your ideas, and especially your closing remark! Well said.
@@user-yv6xw7ns3o There’s an old Simpsons episode set in a Psychiatrist office . Ned Flander’s Parents and a shrink are trying to figure out what’s wrong with (childhood) Ned Flanders. Seems baby Ned was an awfully rambunctious child. He’s climbing on the Psychiatrist’s bookshelf in the background and throwing his books on the floor. So the Psychiatrist shouts at him:
“STOP THAT!!! Most of those books haven’t been discredited yet!!!”
The episode aired during The Simpsons so-called golden age in the 90s right around the time I experienced my first severe emotional collapse as an adult. Racked by paralyzing anxiety, agoraphobia and panic attacks, and Desperate for help, I turned to my doctor. She referred me to a psychologist. I spent several years in therapy spilling my guts to what I can only describe as a power and shame based quasi-Freudian behavioral quack PHD. It was awful, and I got nowhere. Each visit cost around $100, and I saw him every week in the mid 1990s. Needless to say, he never diagnosed my autism. Nor did any of the dozen or so subsequent psychotherapists or psychiatrists I turned to over the next 25 years, trying desperately to find relief from hell of what I now know was undiagnosed level one autism.
All the while, in the back of my mind, little Ned Flanders was ripping those books off of the quack shrink’s bookshelf. All the while thinking “these people have no idea what they’re doing - but there’s no alternative 😖☹️”
Well 30 years after I saw that Simpsons episode, I finally have the correct answer to the question:
“What’s wrong with me?”
“Nothing”
There’s nothing wrong with me! I’m just different. 🤓
I knew THAT all along. What a nightmare. So much pain, confusion, self blame, shame, anxiety, and depression. Such a waste of time and effort and money. I’d sue them for incompetence, but they didn’t know any better at the time.
No one did.
Thank god, given that the cure was worse than the disease. The standard of care for autism was still is ABA therapy.
I believe we are in the midst of a revolution in psychology and psychiatry regarding neurodiversity. in life the activism and insight content like this I’m doing everything I can to “spread awareness” of autism- no matter how many sacred cows get gored in the process.
“First - do no harm…”
The mental health profession a lot to answer for, and they know it. They are afraid that their brutal pseudoscientific scam is coming to an end. That all of their books are about to discredited, and they’re going to have find an honest way to make living.
PS: The treatment Ned is subjected too looks an awful lot like ABA therapy, and results in Ned’s overly nice, people pleasing behavior- to his detriment.
Self diagnosed at age 59. T
Self diagnosed at age 59 and I will only share with others whom I suspect are also diagnosed or self aware. Self awareness and the ability to share with others in this community has been such a game changer for me. It's such a relief to finally understand why I've felt like a sort of alien being since childhood. While my IQ assessments were high, I can't find something that is directly in front of me if it's not where I expect it to be. When directions say turn right I still have to say the words in my head "I write with my right hand", and imagine the pen in my hand before I know which way to turn. I've learned the art of small talk and actually enjoy it as long as it's a very short encounter because within a few minutes I run out of things to say. But also highly verbal if the topic turns to something I am interested in. Thanks for sharing your perspective.
Regarding the sharing of your diagnosis - I would have argued a couple of years ago that it's essential to disclose an autism diagnosis to receive support. Well, after a a couple of years of freely disclosing my diagnosis - which was done at Kaiser by a team of three mental health specialists, 2 of whom exclusivity specializing in autism assessment, I've changed my opinion.
I have received almost zero support. Even after explaining how autism impacts my ability to read social cues and how it impacts my sensory experience of the world. There's simply too much ignorance and prejudice. Some of the worst reactions I've gotten were from people I once considered close friends.
So I think you are wise to limit disclosure to people who are different like us. These are the people I've found who are supportive and understanding. Ironically, I'm considering learning how re-mask myself, lol. To learn how to script small-talk, and pretend to be normal under most social circumstances because it's not safe to be openly autistic yet.
It's a real dilemma. I want to spread awareness and connect with other people on the spectrum. My openness has resulted occasionally in learning that people have autistic children, or that they are or suspect themselves to be on the spectrum. But I don't think I've gotten through to a single neurotypical person. I suspect I've upset some people on the spectrum who don't realize it, and who's masking works for them - usually because their autism / areas of monfocus hasn't socially disabled them or caused them the grief my own have.
It's very frustrating, but It is what it is. I feel like I need to find a balance that doesn't alienate and "other" me while still remaining true to who I am, and enables me to survive and hopefully thrive in a world that's clueless about autism.
We'd be better off if we were blind or in wheelchairs - and neurotypical - in their world. Because they'd see our limitations and struggles, and feel empathy and act more compassionately towards us.
Like they do with autistic children.
But we are on our own for now, and still have to hide for the most part -unfortunately.
@@lorilimper5429
My mother's mother, in Danish we say "mormor" (mom's-mom), told me she was forced to write using her right hand even though she was a leftie. School was brutal before the 1950's. And exactly as you said: Cane, or in Danish: "spanskrør" (Literally "spanish reed", named after the Palm it came from, the Spanish palm - or so named in Danish anyway.)
Might be getting my private diagnosis this coming Tuesday. I was due to go next Tuesday and my daughter was going this coming Tuesday. But this weekend she caught covid so we may get swapped around. Shall find out on Monday.
Great drawing by Emily. 👍🏻 Mike, you often remind me of the animated character Murdoc from the Gorillaz music video's. The artist who draws those could do a great drawing of you I'd imagine. 🙂
Paul, good luck tomorrow/today (depending when you read this). I hope all goes well for you and you’ve planned something pleasant for yourself for afterwards.
Murdoc 😅😂😂😂 thank you, I think! 😎 :)
@@Autistic_AF All done and I'm now officially diagnosed at 53, I'm 54 in just a few weeks time. Just confirmation for what I've thought for the last 20 odd years anyway. He said I scored very highly and was impressed how I keep it so well hidden. I had masking down to a fine art from an early age. I did well at school, left with high grades etc, apart from being the quiet kid there was nothing really obvious to set me apart as being different. He was impressed at my methods for circumnavigating around autism and still managing to become one of the UKs top selling artists. All in all a good day's results. 🙂
Congratulations; Paul! 🥳
Stumbled into a conversation on Twitter yesterday with a longtime friend about the increase in dx's of all things neurodivrgnt. We're both of the belief that ultimately it's not "more" people being diagnosed, it's more issues being recognized... and then the convo inevitably turned towards those who would still be with us, had their "wiring differences" been discovered and accommodated properly.
Medicine and diagnostic standards never work fast enough for society.
Sorry. Didn't mean to be a Debbie downer here or anything, but it's a thought I haven't been able to stop thinking about since....
Love the portrait and how it shows your energy!
Thank you 🙏
Another great video. Im late to the diagnosis. Ive worked in highly productive creative industries, Ive noticed that southpaws have a great creative way at looking at the world and problem solving, the same as us. I love working or socialising with anyone who brings something different to the table.
At the risk of sounding ubermensch, there are ways in which all types of divergent and different minds push forward the collective consciousness. We look in on the world, are confused by it and bring forward a dfferent veiw. In part simply to help us navigate it.
The majority of folk seem happy to to skip through the meadow of conformity. Oh no, Im a fake, I cant possibly be ASD. I just used a metaphor, Im not robot enough.
Struck with yard stick for flapping my hands or bouncing my knee or just that flat expression while the teachers was talking. That was 1978,
Dude. That’s awful.
Thanks mate!
This is the same thing with trans people, it is wild how many people don't get this. AAAH sad. When I was younger they tried to have me be right handed but I just wouldn't do it. Even after the stigma the idea of being right-handed was still attempted.
Oh that’s a good point re; trans. “It’s an epidemic!!!” etc.
i am autistic and left handed. i am... lautistic?
In the 1960s my father went to a Catholic elementary school. He was physically struck by the nuns if he used his left hand to write. He talked about it all his life, it’s a large part of why he left the church. If he’d lived long enough I think he would’ve figured out that he was autistic, too. (Edit- I originally stated “if he used his right hand to write,” I meant “if he used his left hand to write.”)
Perfection!
Thank you! ☺️
I was born left handed in the soviet union, my teachers punished it out of me, i now cannot write with my left hand anymore
No insult intended here, but only history. (My special interest.) During research for some of my other projects, I found a VERY interesting article that you can look up online. (Understand that the word "idiot" (along with moron and imbecile) at the time meant various diagnosis-levels of IQ.) This article is titled "A Chapter on Idiots” in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Vol. IX No. XLIX (June 1854), 101-104. Some of the descriptions about the child's lack of eye-contact are rather familiar. These children were apparently often institutionalized and taught a trade if possible. There is no way to accurately know the number of cases at that time. Not only was there no differentiation yet between autism and intellectual disability, but roughly 400 children per 1000 died before their 5th birthday in 1850. Children who had any type of challenge probably would have been even more vulnerable, and some might not have lived long enough to really show much difference in their reactions.
Some good points.
It upsets me how many people take this rise in diagnostics to be a "trend." I got very upset by a woman my own age with an early diagnosed daughter with higher support needs. She claimed that my diagnosis at age 39 was part of a tiktok trend and that I wasn't valid since my "differences" aren't "deficiencies" (even though i have an OFFICIAL diagnosis and i didn't even know what tiktok was at that time!!) and these older neurotypicals think late diagnosed adults are just faking it for attention because we weren't as easy to find as her daughter's diagnosis. It really pissed me off and I had a meltdown trying to explain it to my friends who kept being on the mother's side.
As someone who's entered the discussion as a caregiver (and it's unknown whether or not I'm NT, tbh, I fall in that "mother with some autistic traits" category at the very least), I've been struck by how many parents of higher needs people on the spectrum do a lot of gatekeeping and manage to center themselves and their experiences in the discussion. Having watched people engaging in challenging caregiving duties in other situations...it was very obvious to me that the experiences of the caregiver and the person receiving caregiving are quite different, and the former is not always clear on the experiences of the latter. This is especially true when the person being cared for has communication challenges.
You not inconveniencing the person you were talking to in the manner she associates with her own caregiving duties doesn't mean that you're not autistic. I can see so many things in my (grown, diagnosed as a young adult) autistic kid that were passed off as other issues when said child was younger, but there was a general awareness that the kid had atypical reactions and issues in many areas. We just didn't describe it as autism.
If you reverse this for them then it shows them. Lots of NT people are special needs just do extremely low IQ. My wife works with kids like that just tying to teach them basic life skills that everyone takes for granted. They aren't on spectrum just low IQ. So reversing it would be telling the that woman she can't be NT as extremely disable people only NT and she being NT is just a attention ploy because she has an average IQ or better. It was my wife that pointed this out me as she works with special needs kids which includes both one spectrum and not on spectrum kids, there's more NT special needs kids that ND ones. Which makes sense based on number NT people vs ND people. Just being on spectrum does not mean you are disabled but the society might not be ideal for you function in. Still there would be special needs people that need support in same way there are with NT people.
@@ramonarobot that would be wonderful.
social media / content creators do make it feel like a trend. more and more behaviors are constantly being pathologized. i struggle in all the ways even if i think it’s just human but for me it’s very natural to question things more. like the word official just as much as the word trend for example. it all gets to be very silly to me. we all know what comes easy or not so easy. we all want to belong. i just don’t get what diagnostics does that is good. it’s not positive. it’s not disease. it’s behavior based. very relative culturally. and in response to so many shitty systems.
I got told by one parent that my diagnosis cheapened the diagnosis of autism.
I understand that her daughter has a hard life. I don't claim that I have the same level of difficulty.
But I do think that my level of distress warrants diagnosis.
My grandmother (born 1914) was forced to write right handed and was hit on left hand. She was top student at school and could mirror write. I am ASDADHD
I like your work and delivery AF
Left-handed and autistic, I would have been viewed as cursed! Lol
When you say not so long ago, you mean as early on as the 1980s here in US. I was born left handed, and then school happened. I was forced to use my right for everything, irrespective of the way I may of felt about it. It's a horrifying abuse, though I cannot say all of this without pointing out the irony of the situation. As a direct result of my handedness being changed, my natural aptitude for ambidextrous activities is higher than the norm. Yet, I am left to wonder what in my life may of been different without the conversion. Anything is possible I suppose.
The way I thought he'd mentioned autism in the starting skit and was like "it'd be so funny if he did this, but was actually talking about left handedness" and didn't realise that he actually hadn't stated they were talking about autism and I must have misheard,,, and he was actually doing the skit I thought would be funny but unfortunately it wasn't the direction he chose,,,, but he did,, I love it,, one braincell, truly
In my family both being left handed and neurodivergent are the norm...I wonder if any research has connected the 2 after all they are both inherited in the main...?
Oooooo, interesting. Nina's side of the family are left handed too, predominantly. But, not neurodivergent at all. It's an interesting thought, isn't it? -Mike
I am right-handed and have autism. My boyfriend is left-handed and has ADHD.🤷🏻♀️
It's because it's related to FMR1 (fragile X) and repeat expansions.
On the issue of left-handedness (and linguistics), the word sinister actually comes from the latin for left. Make of that what you will!
Interesting!!
Hi! I really like your videos. Would you consider doing a video about the possible connection between food and autism? I've read a book called A User Guide to the GF/CF Diet for Autism, Asperger Syndrome and AD/HD, by Luke Jackson, and I'd like to know your opinion and the viewers' opinions about it. Thank you!
Hello, Loren! Thank you for the book recommendation and kind words. I’ll take a look sometime! -Mike
I think there are enough people with an autism diagnosis now for us to create our own sovereign nation. We'll call it "Autismia", and Info Dumping will be our official national sport. 😅
Haha yes! I’m down :)
A hat full of peeps! 🥰
👒🐥🐣🐤🐥🐣🐤
LMAO that intro
Good LMAO, I hope? ;) haha. Hope you're doing well, Shelton! -Mike
@@Autistic_AF it was good 😂, I’m doing well.
Dang library reactionaries!
observer: "but he looks and acts normal"
this guy _TILTS WHILE TALKING_
And that seems "normal" to me! 💖
Although there are not many tools that are designed for left handed people, so to some extent we are still disabled, just more or less accepted.
not sure what country you live in. We aren't accepted in most other countries
I know isn’t the point of the video, we lived for a year in China and people was chocked that we haven’t corrected my daughter left handiness. She went to the school there for a few months and it was a complication to have her because at first they sit her at the right side of the double table so, when writing, she collided with the kid at her left side… in a classroom with 50+ children having kids with accommodations needs can be challenging 😥😥
Wow, I’m sorry she had that experience!
Probably because of trauma. C-PTSD (Complex PTSD) basically comorbid symptoms of autism, and also ADHD. I wasn't born with autism or ADHD, but I could fool anyone with the way I present myself. I describe myself like a feral yet timid animal in captivity, that even after all these years, still remains feral. My nervous system is completely separate from my thinking. I can't/won't seek help because I don't trust anyone (being feral) I just isolate and use drugs/coping mechanisms. I'm almost 40 years old. What a bullshit existence.
Is it all the Red Dye 40 that we're all consuming?
I doubt it. My parents were health food fanatics. All the food we ate was organic. I still had problems as a child and I am diagnosed with autism.
Interestingly, my autistic nephew did get very angry when he ate red dye #40 according to my sister in law. She restricted my nephew from eating it.
There is not much evidence to support the dye causing autism but some autistic people might react badly to it.
I think there will come a time when we will half to retire the term neurotypical as the variety of brain differences become more noticed. If there is some sort of environmental factor creating an epigenetic phenomenon that manifests as spectrum disorders, what we know today as neurotypicals may slowly become an endangered breed of human.
Yes, I think so too.
But it isn't because everyone is autistic. It is because there are so many ways that the brain can be different. Autism, mental health issues, epilepsy, intellectual disabilities, traumatic brain injuries, etc. etc.
I’ll take the slightly dissident view here although I mostly agree. We can understand the spectrum as incredibly wide and acknowledge that. However, conflating Elon musk or Jerry Seinfeld as being in any material way similar to my non verbal and self harming child is awful and leads to fundamental misunderstandings of what life for extreme cases actually looks like. Barely any research (I think 6%) is done on severely disabled autistic people. That’s a huge problem. Studying the somewhat socially awkward kid who likes to eat the same thing everyday is unlikely to help me or my child in any real way. The question became, do you lump everyone together (lumper), or split them up (splitter) and approach them differently? I’m a splitter because I think it will lead to better research and outcomes for the most vulnerable. (edited* limp to lump. lumper/splitter)
Hi Brooke, thanks for checking out my channel. I am very sorry to hear your child is self harming. I hope your situation improves in the future. Take care, -Mike
This definitely hits home; another analogy I could name is queerness. The feeling of rejection, lack of acceptance and safety, the awareness that there are people around out there to kill and torture you, and having to deal with prejudice and dehumanization, isolation, depression, not being able to get the support you need... I know it as an autistic person and I know it as a trans woman. Both have a lot in common. The resistance and building communities is also common, on the other hand. Spreading knowledge and awareness, making a change in the world around us, supporting each other.
I believe the prevalence of Autism is far higher than any of these studies suggest. I believe at least a rate of 1 in 25, if not higher in the general populace. I can't back this up with any data, just my own personal experience & observations.
Such a great video, thank you!! I was lucky enough to get diagnosed at 31 on public healthcare during a very brief window when they were still offering adult evaluations. My partner, on the same healthcare 2 years later, doesn't have this option since they no longer offer adult evaluations. He will need to pursue a private evaluation out of pocket eventually. My Dad is working towards getting his evaluation. Looking back, we are all pretty sure now that my grandfather's diagnosed "deafness" was actually undiagnosed autism. Raising public and medical provider awareness means the world to us! Thank you for your videos!!
The key word here is everyone. Everyone is weird. Everyone is different. Therefore, by that logic and technicality, autistics are not weird and different. They fit in the puzzle properly
Everyone is different but autistic people are usually more so. I have been told my whole life that I am weird. People have asked me why I can't be more normal. I was left out when most other children were not because I was too strange. So sure, everyone is different. But some of us are extra different.
I’ve just received my diagnosis today but I’m unclear what ados score of 12 means? Can anyone explain for me please
Congratulations, Cathy. ADOS scores are 15-60. Less than 30 is essentially not autistic. I don’t think 12 is a possible score, but I could be wrong. Was this a typo? Take care and congratulations again! -Mike 🧡
I guess it will be around 10%, or maybe even more
I dont feel special being autistic anymore
Hell, i dont even feel autistic anymore, people have overtaken my autism
How can people take over your autism?
@@Catlily5 behaviour
@@Revengilate still confused but ok.
So how about people with two left hands? 🤔😉
Please HELP me!! I'm BEGGING you to listen! I am 40, I've been HF autistic my whole life, very HF because I have a very high IQ so the mask held on through 30......yes THIRTY, self-deletion attempts, now I have been STOIC for 7 years since my last, I have NOBODY, I am HF Austistic and the more videoes I watch the more hopeless I am becoming because I REALIZE I am in hell and the odds are so against me!
I haven't had the energy to make a post, since I understood who I am, I have been drained of everything, I need support. I have been TORTURED by neurotypical doctors my whole life. Drugged over and over for everythin, then told my backstabbing neurotypical psychiatrist of SIX years, yeah I'm autistic but she didn't want to tell me because there's no "CURE" like I needed to be drugged for BS diagnosis some more! I left her when she said CURE because WE don't need to be cured.
This is a cry for help to any autistic people. I've been masking since I was 17 and now I'm 40 and the toll of going undiagnosed has cost me my left hand! I don't have the strength or energy to explain this. In all honesty I am going to repost this because I NEED GUIDENCE PLEASE! My mask is dead, I am in stasis mode, it took 3 days just to write this! Please give me numbers and advice! Thank you all...
I am not a healthcare professional or psychotherapist. If you feel that you need immediate mental health support, please see the list of mental health helplines at HelpGuide.org here:
www.helpguide.org/find-help.htm
@@Autistic_AF Thank you. I have been practically paralyzed for 3 days just in shutdown mode, I literally couldn't even type a comment. This is helpful. Thank you so much, I love your videos! They helped me so much.
5:11 i see what you did there.
As an autistic boy, i dont find that funny or accurate
I am sure, it should be separated for people that just different and people that have disadvantage in life. not calling all of them autistic, it is bullshit
You have to be experiencing difficulty in your life due to autism to get diagnosed with autism.
80+ percent of autistic people aren't working. The 15 to 20% that do work often have difficulties keeping their job, major problems socializing, problems with executive functioning or other problems. Sometimes problems aren't that obvious to other people. That doesn't mean that no problems exist.
To diagnose autism it has to be more than a difference.
People can act more functional than they are.
i think diagnosis would significantly go down (on asd and many things) but only as much as hate, capitalism, baby boomer thinking, phone usage, group think youtube level didactic creators, black and white thinking toward neurology goes down.
I've stopped bothering to identify as autistic, the labels lost all meaning. It's just normal these days.