Re: degree of autism? -- Mouse

[Guest guest]

Mouse, you sure don't " sound " autistic. You used the

word " curiosity, " (a difficult concept for autistic

persons to grasp), expressed the why concept ( " how

come " ), understand others' social reactions to you --

or at least what you believe their reactions to be

( " not too many people want to get to know me or

anyting " ), and overall, express yourself very well.

It sure sounds to me as if you are not autistic, of if

you are, you must be at the very mild end of the

spectrum.

I'm curious -- why is it that you think most people

don't want to get to know you?

--- Mouse wrote:

> Just out of curiosity. How come? I mean, I am

> autistic and not too many people want to get to know

me or anything...

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

I hope it didn't sound as if I was doing any kind of

" lumping. " We have an autistic child, so we obviously

know that there are degrees on the spectrum. We have

interacted with many autistic persons and they just do

not come across like you do. Take it as a compliment

to your expressive abilities!

Also I thought that the issue with autistic persons in

general is not just getting the words out, but not

being able to formulate the concept in their mind. I

was not aware that someone might not be able to speak,

yet be very articulate in writing.

--- Mouse wrote:

>

> I am glad I do not " sound autistic " to you. I have

> to say that I think you are lumping us all together...

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

YOU WERE LUMPING! It seemed so mean the way you said

it. I's just that I am too low functioning for

everywhere else and apparently too high for here. You

discounted the years it took me to get to the spot I

can write well and I still make a lot of mistakes and

it takes me a long time to write it out. My brain

works better than some and not as well as others.

I go to autism camp. My friend is blind but has

an IQ of 165 (way out my league) and has perfect

speech. I have to sign to someone who has to translate

it to words and speak it to . I am not sure what

makes autistic but as you have to submit a

letter from your physician documenting your autism in

order to get in, I know he is autistic. My camp buddy

Cody seems quite normal. I have no idea what makes him

autistic. is obviously very autistic and is

totally obsessed with the weather, every waking moment

of his life. Bryce was retarded as well as autistic.

Bobby is autistic and does that finger wiggling thing

I do. I guess my point is that everyone was different

and I was seeing them at thier best. camp. Everyone is

comfortable at camp. Like me, they are probably very

different at school or work. Just like my camp buddy

Lawrence, I still had massive meltdown and stuff at

camp but it was still my best, just like him.

My camp buddy , has no communication. he cannot

sign, cannot do PECS, cannot speak, cannot read or

write. is very intelligent though. I am sending

him and his mom a tshirt just like I wear, it says

" not being able to speak is not the same as not having

anything to say " . I guess it seemed like you

discounted the struggle I have everyday. Everyday.

Recently I had a car accident and when the

construction workers pulled me out of the car I was

signing, or trying to but I don't think I was making

much sense, even to a person who could sign, but I

obviously could hear. I over heard one of them say to

another " do you think there is something wrong with

him " and the other one said " oh yeah but I am not

sure what " " you think he's retarded? " " no they don't

give retarded people drivers lisenses " and so on it

went. I was scared, I mean, you get side swiped by a

huge semi truck and you will be scared too, so I was

flapping and rocking and couldn't even write, the

thoughts were just stuck in there. Like Ade said,

" brain ice " . The ambulance drivers came and I was

still rocking and finally the police man got my wallet

and took out my " I have autism " card and so the

ambulance guys calmed down and one of them took the

policeman to the side but this time I didn't hear what

they said. I have a restricted license but I was

driving at night and was within 50 miles of my

residence. They put me on a backboard and strapped me

down and away we went. They even turned off the siren

as it was about to kill my ears and blow up my brain.

It's just, I have to belong somewhere. One week or two

weeks a year at camp is not enough to feel like you

belong anywhere. Wow I have headache. I just seemed to

me like you were telling me I did not belong here and

that made me sad.

Mouse

--- m loire wrote:

> I hope it didn't sound as if I was doing any kind of

> " lumping. " We have an autistic child, so we

> obviously

> know that there are degrees on the spectrum. We

> have

> interacted with many autistic persons and they just

> do

> not come across like you do. Take it as a

> compliment

> to your expressive abilities!

>

> Also I thought that the issue with autistic persons

> in

> general is not just getting the words out, but not

> being able to formulate the concept in their mind.

> I

> was not aware that someone might not be able to

> speak,

> yet be very articulate in writing.

>

> --- Mouse wrote:

> >

> > I am glad I do not " sound autistic " to you. I have

> > to say that I think you are lumping us all

> together...

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

I agree with all of that, Mouse. I have been made to feel unwelcome and as

though I did not belong, particularly throughout my early years and it

saddens me that you have felt that way here, which is the place where you

belong most of all - around people who do understand.

I know you have a lot of ability in writing, Mouse, as that is your forte.

That does not mean that you have the same ability in every area of your life

and it would indeed be very wrong to make such a judgement based on this.

After completing my degree and during my period of training in London, I

became involved with a children's special unit in one of the hospitals.

This area was particularly for children with severe illnesses who also had

special needs and handicaps. One little girl there was being treated with

cytotoxic medication for a form of leukaemia. She was profoundly autistic

with a great degree of metal retardation and she was also completely blind

and had been so from birth. To look at, she was a lovely little girl, who

always smiled (despite the fact that her medication would have been enough

to make most adults cry) and laughed all of the time, particularly if she

could hear bird noises. While she had no language skills, she was able to

read Braille and was advanced in this area. To the world, she would have

seemed like a poor little mute, blind girl, with no particular behaviour

traits that showed up her autism. However, if you had been with me when I

first administered her medication and watched her pull both of her eyes out,

you may have a different story to tell!

Basically, what I am stating is that there are many, many, many aspects to

consider before I would ever consider an individual's level of function in

autism, it really is that complex and that far reaching and while it is true

that there are some general characteristics that they share, ALL cases are

unique and should be treated as such.

Ade!

Re: degree of autism? -- Mouse

YOU WERE LUMPING! It seemed so mean the way you said

it. I's just that I am too low functioning for

everywhere else and apparently too high for here. You

discounted the years it took me to get to the spot I

can write well and I still make a lot of mistakes and

it takes me a long time to write it out. My brain

works better than some and not as well as others.

I go to autism camp. My friend is blind but has

an IQ of 165 (way out my league) and has perfect

speech. I have to sign to someone who has to translate

it to words and speak it to . I am not sure what

makes autistic but as you have to submit a

letter from your physician documenting your autism in

order to get in, I know he is autistic. My camp buddy

Cody seems quite normal. I have no idea what makes him

autistic. is obviously very autistic and is

totally obsessed with the weather, every waking moment

of his life. Bryce was retarded as well as autistic.

Bobby is autistic and does that finger wiggling thing

I do. I guess my point is that everyone was different

and I was seeing them at thier best. camp. Everyone is

comfortable at camp. Like me, they are probably very

different at school or work. Just like my camp buddy

Lawrence, I still had massive meltdown and stuff at

camp but it was still my best, just like him.

My camp buddy , has no communication. he cannot

sign, cannot do PECS, cannot speak, cannot read or

write. is very intelligent though. I am sending

him and his mom a tshirt just like I wear, it says

" not being able to speak is not the same as not having

anything to say " . I guess it seemed like you

discounted the struggle I have everyday. Everyday.

Recently I had a car accident and when the

construction workers pulled me out of the car I was

signing, or trying to but I don't think I was making

much sense, even to a person who could sign, but I

obviously could hear. I over heard one of them say to

another " do you think there is something wrong with

him " and the other one said " oh yeah but I am not

sure what " " you think he's retarded? " " no they don't

give retarded people drivers lisenses " and so on it

went. I was scared, I mean, you get side swiped by a

huge semi truck and you will be scared too, so I was

flapping and rocking and couldn't even write, the

thoughts were just stuck in there. Like Ade said,

" brain ice " . The ambulance drivers came and I was

still rocking and finally the police man got my wallet

and took out my " I have autism " card and so the

ambulance guys calmed down and one of them took the

policeman to the side but this time I didn't hear what

they said. I have a restricted license but I was

driving at night and was within 50 miles of my

residence. They put me on a backboard and strapped me

down and away we went. They even turned off the siren

as it was about to kill my ears and blow up my brain.

It's just, I have to belong somewhere. One week or two

weeks a year at camp is not enough to feel like you

belong anywhere. Wow I have headache. I just seemed to

me like you were telling me I did not belong here and

that made me sad.

Mouse

--- m loire wrote:

> I hope it didn't sound as if I was doing any kind of

> " lumping. " We have an autistic child, so we

> obviously

> know that there are degrees on the spectrum. We

> have

> interacted with many autistic persons and they just

> do

> not come across like you do. Take it as a

> compliment

> to your expressive abilities!

>

> Also I thought that the issue with autistic persons

> in

> general is not just getting the words out, but not

> being able to formulate the concept in their mind.

> I

> was not aware that someone might not be able to

> speak,

> yet be very articulate in writing.

>

> --- Mouse wrote:

> >

> > I am glad I do not " sound autistic " to you. I have

> > to say that I think you are lumping us all

> together...

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

HELLO~ Since autism is a spectrum disorder, it seems that each autistic person has their own autistic "thumbprint" which makes each and every person unique. For instance, my son is quite high-functioning in some ways and, yet, in other ways he is kind of low-functioning. His high intelligence makes him a great mimic of what seems to be appropriate behavior, but he gets mixed up and does things inappropriately at times. This leaves people thinking he is just weird or whatever. I know I am lucky that he is very verbal and tries to be social, etcetera, but I still feel a great sadness for him when I see him fail through no fault of his own. Of course, I don't want him to be more low-functioning, but I sometimes hope he isn't aware of people being mean to him or avoiding him. Mouse, please don't leave the group. I think we all realize you are a unique person with your own kind of autism, and your particular viewpoint is very insightful and full of practical wisdom. I hope I am saying this right to get across what I really mean. I think we all have difficulties with that at times, and I hope you understand that misunderstandings can sometimes occur. Take care and have a good day. P.S. I hope you recovered OK from your auto accident. ~LANIGet more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Mouse,

Hope you are alright after the car accident you had. It must have been

really frightening for you. I really hope you are ok.

C

Mum to Lloyd, 12yrs, AS

Sydney NSW

>

>Reply-To: autism-aspergers

>To: autism-aspergers

>Subject: Re: degree of autism? -- Mouse

>Date: Tue, 20 Aug 2002 09:17:19 -0700 (PDT)

>

>YOU WERE LUMPING! It seemed so mean the way you said

>it. I's just that I am too low functioning for

>everywhere else and apparently too high for here. You

>discounted the years it took me to get to the spot I

>can write well and I still make a lot of mistakes and

>it takes me a long time to write it out. My brain

>works better than some and not as well as others.

>I go to autism camp. My friend is blind but has

>an IQ of 165 (way out my league) and has perfect

>speech. I have to sign to someone who has to translate

>it to words and speak it to . I am not sure what

>makes autistic but as you have to submit a

>letter from your physician documenting your autism in

>order to get in, I know he is autistic. My camp buddy

>Cody seems quite normal. I have no idea what makes him

>autistic. is obviously very autistic and is

>totally obsessed with the weather, every waking moment

>of his life. Bryce was retarded as well as autistic.

>Bobby is autistic and does that finger wiggling thing

>I do. I guess my point is that everyone was different

>and I was seeing them at thier best. camp. Everyone is

>comfortable at camp. Like me, they are probably very

>different at school or work. Just like my camp buddy

>Lawrence, I still had massive meltdown and stuff at

>camp but it was still my best, just like him.

>My camp buddy , has no communication. he cannot

>sign, cannot do PECS, cannot speak, cannot read or

>write. is very intelligent though. I am sending

>him and his mom a tshirt just like I wear, it says

> " not being able to speak is not the same as not having

>anything to say " . I guess it seemed like you

>discounted the struggle I have everyday. Everyday.

>Recently I had a car accident and when the

>construction workers pulled me out of the car I was

>signing, or trying to but I don't think I was making

>much sense, even to a person who could sign, but I

>obviously could hear. I over heard one of them say to

>another " do you think there is something wrong with

>him " and the other one said " oh yeah but I am not

>sure what " " you think he's retarded? " " no they don't

>give retarded people drivers lisenses " and so on it

>went. I was scared, I mean, you get side swiped by a

>huge semi truck and you will be scared too, so I was

>flapping and rocking and couldn't even write, the

>thoughts were just stuck in there. Like Ade said,

> " brain ice " . The ambulance drivers came and I was

>still rocking and finally the police man got my wallet

>and took out my " I have autism " card and so the

>ambulance guys calmed down and one of them took the

>policeman to the side but this time I didn't hear what

>they said. I have a restricted license but I was

>driving at night and was within 50 miles of my

>residence. They put me on a backboard and strapped me

>down and away we went. They even turned off the siren

>as it was about to kill my ears and blow up my brain.

>It's just, I have to belong somewhere. One week or two

>weeks a year at camp is not enough to feel like you

>belong anywhere. Wow I have headache. I just seemed to

>me like you were telling me I did not belong here and

>that made me sad.

>Mouse

>--- m loire wrote:

> > I hope it didn't sound as if I was doing any kind of

> > " lumping. " We have an autistic child, so we

> > obviously

> > know that there are degrees on the spectrum. We

> > have

> > interacted with many autistic persons and they just

> > do

> > not come across like you do. Take it as a

> > compliment

> > to your expressive abilities!

> >

> > Also I thought that the issue with autistic persons

> > in

> > general is not just getting the words out, but not

> > being able to formulate the concept in their mind.

> > I

> > was not aware that someone might not be able to

> > speak,

> > yet be very articulate in writing.

> >

> > --- Mouse wrote:

> > >

> > > I am glad I do not " sound autistic " to you. I have

> > > to say that I think you are lumping us all

> > together...

> >

> > __________________________________________________

> >

[Guest guest]

No, not what I meant at all! It was a COMPLIMENT. I

also wanted to learn more about expressing yourself so

well in writing.

-- Mouse wrote:

....I just seemed to me like you were telling me I did

not belong here and that made me sad...

__________________________________________________