Autism Spectrum Disorder, more commonly known and diagnosed as ASD, has become more and more prevalent in the last decade. It has gone from 1 in 110 in 2006, to 1 in 68 by 2012. It's important to understand and recognize that this prevalence has nothing to do with a higher rate of children with autism, but rather the diagnostic criteria being changed. As time has gone on, the symptoms and signs have grown, as scientists have begun to understand the disorder more and more, and correctly diagnose people who have gone for years without diagnosis. Both PDD-NOS and Asperger's Syndrome were combined as ASD, which is an umbrella term for anyone on the autism spectrum.
A photo depicting the areas of the brain that autism affects
Recent studies have shown that a very common indicator of a child that will grow to have autism is early brain growth between the ages of 6 to 24 months. It's found that an increase in brain growth in this time period can be critical in a child developing autism and being diagnosed later on in life. For the most part, these were indicative of social setbacks, such as with early developmental milestones.
A photo depicting the change in diagnoses
As time has continued, there has been a larger and larger fight on deciding whether or not autism requires a cure, more awareness, or simply acceptance. With a long disproven and ongoing fight with vaccines and other sciences as of late, the debate has become more heated. With fewer disability rights being seen in the near future, it's questionable on what is the best decision to make for people with autism and those who support them. Some charities such as Autism Speaks make the argument that such a "debilitating" disorder should require a cure, and that any individuals affected by it shouldn't have to "suffer" through the pains of having an autistic friend or relative.
However, many families don't see their loved ones as burdens, and call for more awareness on the disorder, and more acceptance from the larger communities. Many high functioning autistic people are people you've befriended, as many will go undiagnosed for years due to shifts in criteria and lack of resources to be properly diagnosed. On top of that, a lot of the key symptoms for ASD don't vary too much from heightened social awkwardness, anxiety, and ADHD.
A photo of Nikola Tesla, serbian scientist and inventor of the alternating current
In the scientific community, there are many prevalent autistic people, or at least people estimated to be autistic, such as the brilliant and misunderstood Nikola Tesla, or Albert Einstein. There are some suspicions that even people such as Thomas Jefferson were autistic. These people with eccentricities had gifts widely renowned by the public eye, and only further the idea that autism is a misunderstood gift that society needs to recognize. Until then, it seems that the only talk about autism will be the correlation, or lack thereof, of getting your children vaccinated.
Psychology Today: Autism
Mayo Clinic - Autism
APA: Autism
I think it's really interesting (and not shocking) that the diagnosis criteria keeps changing. I've heard before that many people had gone their lives without being diagnosed. Overall, love this post! I just wish the pictures were a little bigger so I could see them more clearly.
ReplyDeleteAspergers runs on both sides of my family, and as somebody that has multiple family members on the autism spectrum I've always been especially irritated about the whole vaccine "controversy," not only because anti-vaccers have absolutely no scientific basis for their claims but also because of how offensive the whole idea of the anti-vaccer movement is to those with autism. These people are so terrified at the prospect of having a child that turns out to be just like my father or my cousin or my uncle or my grandfather that they endanger their own children and others by refusing to vaccinate their children against harmful and potentially deadly infections. My father and grandfather are both talented lawyers, my uncle is a successful engineer, and my cousin is a gifted painter who went to college on an art scholarship. And while they are admittedly a bit socially awkward they are all brilliant, good people who have accomplished much in their lives despite having what some people label a "debilitating" disorder. I really appreciate you writing this article and helping people gain a deeper understanding of a misunderstood condition.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting how the world continues to see disorders such as autism, as situations that will/do have a negative impact on the lives of those affected. As Elliot said, amazing historical individuals such as Tesla and possibly Jefferson were believed to be on the spectrum. Also, Maggie I completely agree that having a child with autism is not the end of the world and people should not be so terrified of that possibility. Lastly, I think it is so interesting how autism has a spectrum which allows some to go undiagnosed for years!!
ReplyDeleteI think it's so important to not only destigmatize ASD, but also perceived "causes" of the disorders. From personal experience, I know how harsh society can be on people who seem different than others. My cousin Christopher has, along with a million other amazing qualities, autism, and my family's biggest concern for his well-being is how the world will treat him differently because of his disability. What Chris lacks in social skills, he makes up for in extraordinary intellect, so I also really appreciated the mention of misunderstood geniuses like Tesla and Einstein. It's so important, as Elliot said, to realize that people with ASD are not burdens or eyesores to society. Everyone's brains operate differently, and no matter how an individual's functions, they contribute something amazing to their families and communities. Furthermore, people are distracted from the real ways we can help people affected by ASD when they claim vaccines can cause autism. By turning on science, people are simply ignoring the facts and neglecting the real issues. Instead of pointing the blame on life-saving procedures, society should be more focused on how we can better educate people on ASD, to make the world a more understanding place from all parts of the spectrum.
ReplyDeleteI think it is very important to make sure that we continue to talk about autism as a disorder and not a life sentence. I know many people who are on the spectrum but are still able to lead a happy, healthy life. I think if we start also showing that side of autism people will be less scared of talking about autism and really thinking about what we can do, if anything at all, to improve the quality of life of Autistic people. What really interested me about your article was when you wrote about anti-vacciners. I wonder, since the number of people being correctly diagnosed is rising (as you stated in your article), does this mean that some people believe it is correlated to the rise in the use of vaccines? I don't know much about the topic, but it really interested me. I think it's also important to start educated anti-vacciners because it is not only themselves they are hurting with this belief, it is also their children.
ReplyDeleteI have cousins that are autistic, one more sever than the other so I definitely root for this disorder being accepted by society. But an interesting thing to ask oneself is that if you are able to accept and understand family that is autistic, would you be able to have a friend that was autistic? Would you want to be seen around them? Are you able to be seen around the family because you know that is your family and there's nothing you can do about it ?
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very important topic you wrote about, many people do not actually know what autism is. There is a stigma attached to talking about mental handicaps like autism but it is about time we break it. I think that it is important to know that some of the symptoms are things high school kids go through so people can be more aware. I love how you included extremely successful scientists with Autism showing that no matter what obstacle is in your way you can accomplish anything!
ReplyDeleteA good family friend of mine is autistic. I have seen how people in Montclair interact with him, and it often frustrates me. It's like people don't understand what autism is, and aren't aware how common autism really is. I think this post really shows that people with autism are still people like you and me. I loved the points made about how famous individuals in the scientific community like Tesla, or historical figures like Jefferson might have been autistic.
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