Is My Child Autistic or Gifted? Redefining the Autism Label to Empower Your Kid [2019]

[@theyanfelton]

Thank you for your work. Our son was recently diagnosed with ASD. We had strong suspicions he was special after he started doing 8th grade math at the age of 4. Yes, he has a few sensory seeking issues, but his math & language skills vastly outshine any of his sensory uniquenesses.

[@jimjob28]

You can focus on strengths all day long. I promise you, most educators don't.

[@hilaryforgie4498]

Are you saying that as a parent?

[@sj4iy]

@@hilaryforgie4498 I'm a parent, my child is 2e (autism, adhd and a writing disability) and his school refused to give him an IEP or GIEP. But they did put him in remedial reading for his behavior one day despite having the highest test scores in the entire grade for reading and math. So yes, if your child has any kind of disability, they will ALWAYS focus on the negatives. Also, there's no need to reframe autism just because some parents want think their gifted child isn't autistic.

[@strictnonconformist7369]

As of posting this, I'm a 52 year-old late-diagnosed autistic adult. Functioning labels are severely problematic: how "functional" one is depends to a large degree on the current amount of stress one is under, which can come from internal and external sources as well as personality and how one deals with their reality. Autistic neurology isn't only extremely sensitive to sensory issues, it can also be extremely insensitive regarding sensory issues. I've got a combination of both. It sounds nice to say everyone is a genius in some aspect, you just have to find it, but sadly, that doesn't seem to be true: plenty of humans regardless of being autistic or not prove not everyone has at least one genius aspect. It makes sense to work with strengths: that much I can agree with. Weaknesses need to be properly understood and worked with as well, and quite likely, around, because some things are not feasible or possible: there's a reason autism is considered a disability. IQ doesn't matter much if at all if sensory issues and processing things uses up all the available capacity to do in software what allistics do in hardware. Yes, being autistic is absolutely a difference in wiring. Being autistic and the label itself isn't the problem regarding dealing with others: it's infinitely more important to forget labels and causing needless confusion, and focus on how others treat autistic individuals. You see, how I've been treated has not been any better than someone that had been identified as autistic when I was in school: I had my issues that caused problems in school for learning regardless, and to a limited degree, those were identified, understood, and an IEP set up to account for them. No, the labels weren't the problem: it's how those enforcing the IEP, as well as every other human around me, treated me, as "other" and called me labels of their own choice. Adding a new label to attempt to bypass stigma is the definition of stupid and insane in practice for the one so affected directly: you'll still be treated and mistreated as the odd kid nobody wants around, and being labeled as "gifted" (even when true, by the past usage I was aware of) does nothing to help how one is treated, and in practice, results in even more severe alienation. I find the term "twice exceptional" to be quite patronizing. It adds another piece of garbage into jargon used to separate us from each other, and does zero to change the fact that bullies and adults will still limit what autistics can do by their preconceived and instinctive behavior. If one is autistic, they are autistic, it is what it is, and that should be used to get appropriate services to meet needs. If one is NOT autistic, they shouldn't be assessed as being autistic, because that doesn't meet THEIR needs, either, and where resources aren't available to provide all those that need them, that's even worse. Get them the resources they need, but not by demanding a particular label that is inaccurate in that context. I'm not persuaded I'll live long enough to ever find being recognized as autistic to be something all the rest of society will say, "oh, that's so cool, let me be your friend, let me help you as you need!" instead of what it has always been, a way to "other" people and discriminate against them in a myriad of ways, but having the (correct) label has survival aspects for the autistic individual to at least (hopefully) help get their needs met. The thing that's really bad about being given the label, and actually being autistic, is the observation that in so many practical aspects, it's like "Mission Impossible" with the mission brief self-destructing in a number of seconds: once you're an "adult" it doesn't do you any good for support on things you need, that's just suddenly cut off, as though they no longer are needed. Seems, in a more visible and imperfect analogy form, like a student that's a paraplegic becoming an adult, and jettisoned out of their wheelchair, being told "you can walk now!" Having the label as an adult (in the US) to some degree helps securing reasonable accommodations at work, but first, you need to somehow get employed. Guess what those IEPs tend to do? Prevent you from post-high school education because there are particular requirements to get into various educational programs, that an IEP often prevents you from even signing up for the appropriate classes. This was something that perpetually vexed me: one of the biggest issues for why I ended up with an IEP was dyspraxia. Combine that with a bit of dyslexia, mayhem ensues. So many other issues weren't even identified, but those were huge, dyspraxia being the worst to deal with, though writing is problematic when you're randomly and frequently transposing letters even when you have better spelling than most. All through junior high and high school I registered to take a typing class every semester, and even with the knowledge with how the scheduling worked, I was always prevented from taking that, but oh, I could sign up for other electives that filled time, that really weren't useful, and one period I was assigned to be studying at the front of a class, which was extremely pointless to put me into a total distraction environment where I learned nothing of value, and I couldn't focus anyway (undiagnosed ADHD). I was given no consideration regarding this, and it would have helped me immensely: I ended up getting no higher than a C in a "Computer Applications" class using Word Star, Lotus 1-2-3, because I couldn't type fast enough to finish assignments in the time in class we were allowed, despite the fact I could have taught the class. What did I end up doing for a living? Typing. Mostly writing software. Finally got to touch-typing at the age of 25. Needed shoulder physical therapy decades later as a result of all the nonsense that got me to that point. Damned people that "knew better than me" taking charge to keep me away from what I needed.

[@cherylambrose6522]

This is so valuable. I’ve just started homeschooling my granddaughter who has a recent ASD diagnosis. She had enjoyed school up until this year but became disengaged. She reads 4 grades above her same age peers but primarily non-fiction. My job is to leverage her strengths to help her succeed in areas where she isn’t as strong. It’s not an easy task, but well worth the effort.

[@jasontarman5616]

But I talk to my mom and she said that I'm a smart kid and I'm special and I feel better about myself

[@Bozewani]

I WAS LABELED ocd odd bipolar depressed schizophrenic for enforcing human rights humanitarian criminal refugee law My dream job out of high school was hte International criminal Court I have a political science seven years of experience I can speak the six Un languages (Arabic Chinese English french Russian and Spanish) When I decided to give my high school teachers a crash course on these subjects they dragged me to local court and charged me with all sorts of things I was angry at them for being misdiagnosed and as a teenager I was angry at the International organizations, united Nations, Council of Europe, african Union, organization of american states, the International Committe of the red cross, the International Criminal Court of not enforcing human rights humanitarian criminal refugee law

[@great-garden-watch]

I might as well add my two cents. People in my local mensa chapter are super nice. I don’t go to meetings anymore really but maybe once I retire I will.

[@puiyunee]

This is so helpful! Thank you so much for your clip.

[@gzoechi]

might be both