aren't ret*d people the opposite of autistic people?

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jojobean
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04 Aug 2011, 9:51 pm

I have worked with developmentally disabled people for all my teen years. I think I met only a few of them my entire life that meets that description, most are very autistic on speed-ish.

The only ones that meet your description are those with down's syndrome. They have got to be the happiest most lovabable and trusting people on the planet. But there are many other forms of developmental disabilities.
Did you know that autism is also a form of developmental disorder? We are not so much opposites as we are 2nd cousins to those with mental retardation.
Our opposites are probably sociopaths because a sociopath understands social rules and ways very well and can morph into whoever they want to be for personal gain. They know NT's social system and exploit it for their own benifit.
We can be only who we are, although we try to act NT, our true self shines through anyway. We are usually honest to a fault and are not really capable of manipulation on the level that sociopaths are by any chance. We dont understand the NT social system.
Ironicly, some of us get labeled as sociopaths for some reason unknown to me.


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Callista
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04 Aug 2011, 10:23 pm

Quote:
Did you know that autism is also a form of developmental disorder? We are not so much opposites as we are 2nd cousins to those with mental retardation.
Agreed there. We have a lot in common; I think we ought to join forces. In my area, the department called "MRDD" (mental retardation and developmental disabilities) handles assistance for autistics and people with MR both. A lot of places the same laws apply to both. And both things have in common being a natural difference in the brain that depended on how your brain developed, rather than an acquired problem like with most kinds of mental illness. In both disorders, the solution is teaching useful skills; so there's a heavy importance on education and therapy.

Another thing that's been called "the opposite of autism" is Williams syndrome, which is a genetic disorder that causes developmental delay, but is also associated with extroversion, sociability, natural socializing ability, and a high sensitivity to others' thoughts and feelings. People with Williams syndrome can be so friendly that they can be hurt by people they trust too easily.


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17 Feb 2012, 4:27 pm

felinesaresuperior wrote:
and don't you just love them? i think ret*d people are sweet and mellow with a sunny side to them. they're honest and kind and bond with animals.
i wonder if other autistic people like ret*d people, too, and feel more comfortable around them and feel some kind of bonding with them, like i do. and do you think they're the opposite of us? we're tempermental, they're docile. we have a higher intelligence level and they have a lower one. we're hyper and prone to frustration, they're calm. we're suspicious and they're trusting, (too damn trusting for their own good, sometimes. there are all kind of sickos out there). we get bored quickly, they're content in doing boring chores. we're unfriendly to strangers, they're super friendly and open.


Please forgive me if what I say is at all inaccurate, but it is my understanding autism is basically a condition in which a person has difficulties with interpersonal communication and thus interpersonal and social skills. I believe it is on a scale (spectrum) from very mild and subtle (aspergers) to very severe. An example of a severe case might be a child, say, who can be so focused on something like, say, a video game, to the extent that a crowd of other people can surround him in the room without him even noticing. Autisic people would tend to be very independent and not incredibly social. Those with mild cases (aspergers) might merely be socially ackward.

Is this accurate?

So to touch on the question regarding what is the opposite or antithesis of an autistic person, I would say it would have to be somebody who communicates very well, is very social, who is very good at reading people, very expressive themself, makes friends very easily, and ultimately has excellent interpersonal and social skills. The individuals who posess these virtues would be those who can easily jump aboard a group or team, have a lot of team spirit, easily gets on the same playing field as the group or team they're a part of, and can be strongly effected by others emotions, and ultimately has a lot of empathy and sympathy.

I would have to say fraternity and sorority types are the opposite or antithesis of autistic. Those who were very involved in extracurricular activities and popular in high school and all throughout school. Those who have an ease at fitting in and getting involved and being a part of something bigger than themselves with others around them.

Am I on to something or is anything with my thinking flawed?



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17 Feb 2012, 5:09 pm

The opposite of ret*d is genius. The opposite of autistic is... probably nothing.

Most ret*d people do not fit your description of ret*d, and most autistic people don't fit your description of autistic people. Everyone is different.


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17 Feb 2012, 6:23 pm

I think autistics and ret*ds have more similarities than differences.



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17 Feb 2012, 6:39 pm

BTW: Should remind people that "ret*d" and "ret*d" are starting to be considered offensive words; so if you use them and you don't know whether your audience considers them offensive, you may be mistaken to be prejudiced even if you are not.

NTs are weird that way sometimes. They look at how you say something, instead of what you are saying.

Good alternatives are "developmentally disabled", "intellectual/cognitive disability", or the specific syndrome.

In ten or twenty years, of course those terms will have become offensive and we'll have to switch again.

I know--it's stupid. Why should there be anything wrong with being ret*d, so that mentioning it would be an insult?

Once we figure out there is nothing wrong with it, we can stop switching around the words all the time. Until then, I guess we've got to use the "right" words to keep people from thinking we look down on others for no good reason.


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17 Feb 2012, 7:21 pm

I am comfortable in considering myself ret*d, but know that not every person would feel I fit their definition of what ret*d means.


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17 Feb 2012, 7:45 pm

Orr wrote:
I am comfortable in considering myself ret*d, but know that not every person would feel I fit their definition of what ret*d means.


ret*d happens to be one of those were we have a straight out definition for, it's having an IQ below, oh 70 or so, I forgot the exact number, and the low IQ needs to be a life long thing. Yeah, it's not the best way to define intellectual disability, but thats what the defination of mental retardation is.


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Orr
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17 Feb 2012, 8:18 pm

Ganondox wrote:
ret*d happens to be one of those were we have a straight out definition for, it's having an IQ below, oh 70 or so, I forgot the exact number, and the low IQ needs to be a life long thing. Yeah, it's not the best way to define intellectual disability, but thats what the defination of mental retardation is.


I much prefer your post regarding empathy.


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17 Feb 2012, 9:24 pm

felinesaresuperior wrote:
and don't you just love them? i think ret*d people are sweet and mellow with a sunny side to them. they're honest and kind and bond with animals.
i wonder if other autistic people like ret*d people, too, and feel more comfortable around them and feel some kind of bonding with them, like i do. and do you think they're the opposite of us? we're tempermental, they're docile. we have a higher intelligence level and they have a lower one. we're hyper and prone to frustration, they're calm. we're suspicious and they're trusting, (too damn trusting for their own good, sometimes. there are all kind of sickos out there). we get bored quickly, they're content in doing boring chores. we're unfriendly to strangers, they're super friendly and open.


I don't agree they're opposite really, but in the ways you've described, they are, kind of.

I think the real reason you're probably a lot more comfortable around them is that they, as a rule, are almost never judgmental.


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17 Feb 2012, 9:26 pm

Orr wrote:
I am comfortable in considering myself ret*d, but know that not every person would feel I fit their definition of what ret*d means.


I'm socially ret*d. I don't have any qualms about admitting that. That's the only way I am though.

EDIT: No, wait. I'm pretty sure I'm financially ret*d too. (That's not a joke)


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17 Feb 2012, 9:30 pm

Too bad a good portion of those with autism are mentally ret*d (used to be most, now it's probably half).



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17 Feb 2012, 9:33 pm

Dillogic wrote:
Too bad a good portion of those with autism are mentally ret*d (used to be most, now it's probably half).


DUH. :duh: Good point.


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17 Feb 2012, 9:36 pm

Ganondox wrote:
The opposite of ret*d is genius. The opposite of autistic is... probably nothing.


Wilson's syndrome is the closest to opposite you'll ever see. It isn't really opposite though. So, yeah, nothing really is.

It's like trying to come up with the answer to "What is the opposite of the sky?"


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17 Feb 2012, 9:44 pm

felinesaresuperior wrote:
we're tempermental, they're docile. (...) we're hyper and prone to frustration, they're calm


I am not much sure that people with MR are really docile and calm; the only MR person that I had know (a neigbour of my childhood street) had some occasional moments of violence

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we have a higher intelligence level and they have a lower one


Who is the "we" here? People with ASD? People with AS? I never see any reference of people with ASD being of "higher intelligence" (if anything, the usual stereotype is the opposite)

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we're suspicious and they're trusting, (too damn trusting for their own good, sometimes. there are all kind of sickos out there)


Being trusted and easily tricked is usually presented as a tipical characteristic of autistic people

Quote:
we get bored quickly, they're content in doing boring chores


Again, having pleasure in repetitive activities and difficlties with change is one of the hallmarks of autism.

I think you are confusing autism with a mix of ADHD and paranoid personality disorder.



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17 Feb 2012, 9:54 pm

MrXxx wrote:
I'm socially ret*d. I don't have any qualms about admitting that. That's the only way I am though.

EDIT: No, wait. I'm pretty sure I'm financially ret*d too. (That's not a joke)


Likewise. Also I consider myself ret*d in maturity( psychological), and I do not recognise that in you. I perceive it in some other posters, whereas some younger members surprise me with their maturity at times.


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