Autism is not something to be cured! AGREE? OR DISAGREE?

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Is Autism something to be cured?
Yes, cure autism, destroy our aspie + others culture, and make us all like them 20%  20%  [ 13 ]
No, we should value ourselves as we are, and get treatment instead of a cure 80%  80%  [ 51 ]
Total votes : 64

jamieboy
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15 Dec 2010, 2:35 am

I take two strong b vitamins tabs a day and have for half a decade. I noticed an immiediate difference in my "resting" anxiety level although i still get anxious when i have to socialise unfortunately. I was born with slight brain damage at birth so i suspect this is the reason for my own autism. Thus i cant undertand how the GF/CF diet could possibly alter my damaged brain and "cure" my autism. Also i love milk and wheat products :lol:



imbatshitcrazy
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15 Dec 2010, 7:35 am

i still don't get why you guys don't understand that autism speaks only wants to help kids with low functioning autism? they really don't give a s**t about aspergers. my karate studio is heavily sponsored by autism speaks so i would know



CockneyRebel
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15 Dec 2010, 8:15 am

I'm against a cure and I don't wish for autism to be eradicated, while at the same time, I'm interested in what everybody else has to say about this.


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DandelionFireworks
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15 Dec 2010, 4:14 pm

imbatshitcrazy wrote:
i still don't get why you guys don't understand that autism speaks only wants to help kids with low functioning autism? they really don't give a sh** about aspergers. my karate studio is heavily sponsored by autism speaks so i would know


Because they don't want to help anyone but themselves.


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Lordoftheswarms
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18 Dec 2010, 12:08 am

imbatshitcrazy wrote:
i still don't get why you guys don't understand that autism speaks only wants to help kids with low functioning autism? they really don't give a sh** about aspergers. my karate studio is heavily sponsored by autism speaks so i would know


How about the fact that they don't employ anyone on the autism spectrum?



Arminius
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18 Dec 2010, 12:42 am

I have a problem with the way they generalize.



imbatshitcrazy
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18 Dec 2010, 11:07 am

Arminius wrote:
I have a problem with the way they generalize.


so, you hate them because they generalize aspergers with autism, and since they want to cure autism, they want to cure aspergers?



kate123A
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18 Dec 2010, 2:45 pm

I tried biomed but did it very slowly.....
vitamins for the vitamin deficiencies I have not just whatever I had tests done to determine which vitamins I needed and the
doctor specifically told me the amounts
diet- GF celiacs runs in my family
dairy free-I had a dairy allergy as a child and am now not sick with respiratory/Ear infection/and sinus infections as much now that that is out of my diet again
Methyl B 12- I heard it helps with eye contact and it does for me but I have a lot of vitamin deficiencies specifically B vitamins
Yeast free-the rashes are gone they made life utterly miserable
Anti fungals-I have an immune defect which was also treated but I am at risk for yeast b/c of my dysfunctional immune system
anti biotics also due to dysfunctional immune system from C. Diff I was getting sick every two weeks before starting it and
was on way too much antibiotic.
Chelation for the lead poisoning from living near a large Mexican Lead smelting plant as a child, eating lead paint chips, and low level exposures most ppl get
Antivirals for testing positive to some viruses(at this point I believe what they are saying and I actually feel better)
Some anti depressants to help with anxiety and supplements to help with chemical imbalances.
allergy shots-to deal with my environmental allergies

All of this has helped in some measure to help me get to being healthy. Now you may be wondering why I would do this being that I'm an adult with AS. My life has been full of physical misery and I was looking for a way to improve my health. I still have AS but must admit I may have moved up the spectrum and with me having eye contact I'm slowly starting to catch a few more non verbal cues.....but that would have to be confirmed by a professional and quite frankly I don't care about that. I still have AS
but I'm happier.



ProfessorX
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27 Dec 2010, 12:07 pm

Well, as for as cures go, why not find a cure for cancer,AIDS,or some other problematic health condition affecting millions people worldwide.I'm okay with having AS and I'm not fond person(s) raising money in the hopes of researching for the cure to all classic autistics worldwide..What's next AS?


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14 Mar 2015, 7:32 am

I don't think cures are the answer and I only mentioned treatments those being being taught to use one's Asperger syndrome to acchieve the full potential. Not to just mix with allistics who only want you around as a source of resources and as the butt of the jokes and/or a scapegoat and to give you bad advice and state the flaming obvious.



Bataar
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17 Mar 2015, 12:02 pm

I don't know if it will ever be possible to cure or not, but if there was a cure, I'd take it in a heartbeat. Hell, even if it was in its testing phase I'd sign up.



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17 Mar 2015, 12:35 pm

DandelionFireworks wrote:
Elaine33, you can't just take the bad parts.



^^ Hear! Hear!^^


Anyone who talks about "curing " us is talking about removing our identity. Autism is not just meltdowns and anxiety. It's the lens through which we perceive the world around us and that is what makes you who you are.

You say you don't want to lose your son's sweetness - it might occur to you that much of that sweetness comes from hypersensitivity, which IS autism. When the DSM says we lack empathy, it means we don't notice social cues or know how to respond to them appropriately, it doesn't mean we don't FEEL anything - in fact, there's an entire school of research now that believes (and rightly so) that much of our social anxiety is the result of being TOO sensitive to the emotional states of the people around us - a condition which has been much discussed in these very forums.

To use a description from a former post: Autism tangles up the wiring in your brain, causing an autistic person to perceive the entire world, all their life through a lens that is warped compared to the one everyone else is looking through. Imagine asking a neurotypical person to wear a pair of goggles that make everything look like a funhouse mirror - then imagine forcing them to wear those goggles day and night for the rest of their life, sewn to their head so they can never take them off.

So the very handicaps that cause us so much difficulty and pain, are a large part of the experiences and influences that shape our thought processes and form our personalities throughout our entire lives. I am who I am, and I think and perceive the way that I do because I don't see or experience the world like the people around me do.

That said, I think its a moot point - so far there has not been a specific genetic marker identified as being responsible for autism and it appears there may be several, and that the combination may not be identical in every case (thus the 'spectrum' effect), so a "cure" is not likely until our science and medicine have progressed considerably. OTOH, Big Pharma is not above scrambling brains with Frankenstein chemical concoctions, but they'll shove those pills down my cold, dead throat.


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Sweetleaf
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17 Mar 2015, 3:14 pm

Chronos wrote:
Lordoftheswarms wrote:
Hey,
Someone on Facebook wrote something on a page about Autism that I found very offensive.
I wanted to see what everyone thought here, and see if I could get a bit of support over there. Here is the link.

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?create ... 8476186146

Please write a comment on the page if you don't mind.
Thanks!


Actually I don't think this is a black and white situation. I have AS, that is quite different from low/moderate functioning autism, and can differ significantly from HFA. I can communicate my needs quite well, and I can care for myself. This is not true of everyone, so I do think some forms of autism need to be cured in the sense that I think it appropriate to seek a way such that people lower down on the spectrum can be brought up to a higher level of functioning, in which they can communicate sufficiently and care for themselves.

At the same time, I would like people to recognize AS not just for social deficits, but for the positive aspects.


And why does the autism have to be 'cured' to help someone with lower functioning autism maybe gain some more functioning? I think the goal should be to make them the most functional autistic they can be...not to just remove the autism and hope everything else falls into place. Also accomidations/help should remain for those of us who do have more trouble functioning and aren't able to reach a stage of total functionality without needing any accommodations or financial help for instance.

People should actually ask lower functioning autistics if they want a cure instead of just assuming they'd rather be neurotypical....I have seen plenty express they don't want 'cured' even on this site, I think a while back someone who said they can only communicate in writing/typing but not verbally said something along those lines but it was a while ago.


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Sweetleaf
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17 Mar 2015, 3:18 pm

Clicked the link and either the page is gone or the link is broken...

That said I don't think it is something to be cured, it is possible to function better and still have autism...that and most cures I can fathom seem like quite dangerous and invasive treatments that likely wouldn't be worth it. I don't really feel like there is a specific autism spectrum culture though...I mean we all have differing interests and don't really have any sort of cultural thing in common, just simularities in how we function.


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Sweetleaf
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17 Mar 2015, 3:25 pm

Elaine33 wrote:
I voted yes, cure autism. My son is 11 and was just diagnosed three months ago with Asperger's. He is pretty high functioning. However, I still see how difficult the simplest of things are for him. He gets teased, he has a ton of anxiety, he meltdowns horribly sometimes and then is exhausted and emotionally drained, and feels bad about it and himself, even though we are working on helping him understand and get some control over these things. So I see him suffering and I want that cured.

What I don't want cured is his sweetness and tenderness, his funny personality...HIM. When he is melting down, when he is having a ton of anxiety way out of control, when he is losing his cool even though he desperately wants to play with other kids, I don't think that is him so much as I think of it as his autism.

I can see how the FB thing is offensive, but I also see the other side of it, too. I see how much pain is on this board and I feel sad that there is so much suffering because of autism, and I feel scared for my son as he grows up. And I worry about him functioning in society after I am gone.

I don't want to change him. I want to take away/cure the parts of autism that cause him so much pain.


Why do you think curing him of autism and thus making him neurotypical would cure the teasing? I mean if he's already been hurt by it...even if he was 'cured' that would still be there. Also I see nothing wrong with wanting treatments to get rid of some of the more unpleasant things....but that is not the same as curing autism, thus far the only possibilities of cures seem to be either trying to manually change the way the brain is wired via brain surgery or altering our DNA.

I mean to me it would not be worth that kind of a risk, I'd rather just treat the worst of the symptoms and manage those rather than have my neurology rewired entirely. I don't get why it seems like when people want a cure they never actually think about what that process might look like.....lets put it this way there will never be a magical pill or medication that takes the autism away, so that leaves....obviously more invasive treatments.


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Sweetleaf
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17 Mar 2015, 3:36 pm

nthach wrote:
I voted yes. Asperger's has been nothing but a BANE on my existence. And so many people with autism can't work or contribute to society and they end up collecting SSI/SSDI, draining state social services, and taxing the already taxed public school system. We already have welfare queens collecting welfare checks and stuffing their mouths with junk food they bought on food stamps while they're parked in front of the TV watching Maury or Jerry Springer.

I just feel an ASD dehumanizes people, making people merely a living, breathing, fleshy computer.


Based on how complex curing autism would really be....I imagine I'd still need the SSI if I where cured, and probably would drain even more money because I'd likely be even more disabled a vegetable cannot care for their basic needs and that seems to be one of the dangers....I imagine poking around in someones brain trying to rewire the neurology to neurotypical or trying to alter/undo whatever genetic factors caused the autism run the risk of making the recipient of the treatment an immobile vegetable....at least if I don't screw with my neurology I have the chance of becoming more functional/learning ways to cope so I can eventually hold a job and support myself.

Also back here in reality, these 'welfare queens' are a minority among people on welfare....and a lot of them aren't even using disability money for them....a lot of them have a disabled kid or two collecting benefits, and spend the money that is supposed to be for those children on junk food and stuff for their entertainment, so half the time its not even the person actually collecting benefits using the money that way. Also if we want to talk about tax money being drained, there are plenty more wasteful things its spent on than welfare which actually helps the infrastructure.


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