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Helek_Aphel
Deinonychus
Joined: Nov 02, 2007
Age: 20
Posts: 348
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 Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:51 am Post subject: If there were a "cure", would it even work? |
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See subject title.
I was wondering this a few days ago. To go from an autistic mind to a neurotypical mind doesn't seem like it would cure much of anything. I imagine that the development of social skills should have been done at an age earlier than the person could take the "cure", so peers would really still be ahead of the "cured" person socially. The "cured" person then would still face the same main problems, and so nothing would really happen as a result of taking the "cure". |
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kip
Phoenix
Joined: Mar 14, 2007
Age: 21
Posts: 778
Location: Las Vegas NV USA
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 3:09 am Post subject: |
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Makes sense. Most people who move from one country to another have a hard time understanding normal social cues, and have those troubles the rest of their lives. So, we'd actually be worse off than ever before, as now we'd not even have the original way to fall back on.
And most social cues are picked up by the fifth birthday, whereas most Auties are diag'd at 3 or later. So, there's a very small window where a supposed cure could begin to take effect, reshape old nueral connections, and allow the forming of new ones.
So, they may be able to 'cure' a select few people, but the majority of the population would be screwed.
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sinsboldly
Free Range Aspie
Joined: Nov 22, 2006
Age: 58
Posts: 8263
Location: Oregon, USA
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 3:24 am Post subject: |
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If there were a cure that didn't work, it wouldn't be a cure, would it?
Merle
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The older you get, the more like yourself you become.
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Rainbow-Squirrel
Phoenix
Joined: Dec 27, 2006
Age: 28
Posts: 1214
Location: Siena, Italy
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 5:35 am Post subject: |
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| sinsboldly wrote: | | If there were a cure that didn't work, it wouldn't be a cure, would it? |
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2ukenkerl
Phoenix
Joined: Jul 20, 2007
Posts: 4957
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:24 am Post subject: |
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You are certainly right. To put it in computer terms, it is like you bought an amd computer and the only physical difference between that and another system is the processor. You change the processor, but the warranty, users manual, tuning, and certain software is STILL for the other. The model number is still the same. While physically the same and having the same original capability, it is STILL different.
HECK, I originally thought my problems were due to my childhood. Isolation, Study, Lack of fatherly play, etc... That would all certainly be possible, but it turns out my isolation didn't HAVE to be so complete, something caused the study, I developed this way from an age far earlier than I thought, and something caused me to just not have any interest in such play. In short, it was likely something else, and AS fits like a GLOVE.
If, however, my AS was suddenly "cured", I STILL have those problems created by AS that I once thought caused the problem. It is possible, at this time, that little would change. |
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MR
Velociraptor
Joined: Jun 25, 2008
Age: 39
Posts: 424
Location: USA
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:15 am Post subject: |
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I see what you are saying. It's like curing someone who's been blind since birth or since they were very young. Fixing the blindness doesn't mean they can see like normal stuff, because they didn't learn how to intepret what they see, and the critical period for learning that has passed.
So, too, curing the core neurological differences of autism, if it could be done, wouldn't give us the experiences we'd need to be normal and see (figuratively) the world in a normal way. |
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KingdomOfRats
Phoenix
Joined: Nov 01, 2005
Age: 24
Posts: 2734
Location: Manchester
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:29 am Post subject: |
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am cannot see a cure being used for adults- at least for a while,because of funding likely to be put to those who have just started in life,and childrens brains still developing.
am also would wonder what about if the autie has mental retardation,or multiple learning disabilities,will parents and carers be expecting it all to suddenly disappear with a autism cure?
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mysterious_misfit
Velociraptor
Joined: Apr 25, 2008
Age: 27
Posts: 439
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:54 am Post subject: |
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I don't think it's possible to cure ASDs, because they are caused by the physical structure of the brain. For instance, depression can be cured, because it is a chemical imbalance and medication can re-normalize the chemical imbalance. Many types of psychological problems can be cured by 'talk therapy' so a person can express their feelings and feel better (that's what NTs like to do anyway). But ASDs are not a mental illness. The more I learn about ASDs, the less and less I am able to think of them as any kind of illness at all.
How can any of these be considered illness?
- a strong ability to concentrate.
- a strong internal drive to learn.
- a strong drive to control/create their environment and therefore become engineers, etc.
- excellent hearing, and other sharpened senses.
- love reading.
- normal to very high intelligence.
- attention to detail.
- strong honesty and integrity
I do recognize some impairments
- not able to easily socialize with strangers, but honestly, how important is that?
- lower functioning auties obviously have more severe problems, like self-care
- some level of lacking emotional vocabulary, but I suppose that early diagnosis and therapy in very young ASD tots can really help this.
- socially nieve, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing IMO. Only if you do get taken advantage of, but that is the other person's illness, a desire to take advantage of a vulnerable person. I have a strong aversion to playing 'blame the victim'.
- difficulty with intimate relationships, but there are a heck of a lot of NTs with that same problem, too!
- unusual body movements/postures and stimming, but most ASD adults learn to control these and only stim in private.
Really, what is there to 'cure'??? I'm also realizing that Aspies can learn to do pretty much anything NTs can do, we just have to learn it a different way. And I think that with early diagnosis and early intervention for very young children, there is every reason to believe that they will develop acceptable social skills that will stay with them. |
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mysterious_misfit
Velociraptor
Joined: Apr 25, 2008
Age: 27
Posts: 439
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 9:06 am Post subject: |
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| I forgot to say that you could no more cure ASDs than cure colorblindness. You just can't change brain structure. |
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Tortuga
Phoenix
Joined: Dec 12, 2007
Posts: 531
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 10:09 am Post subject: |
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| I think it might be possible in the future to greatly diminish autism, even in adults. Medicine is advancing very quickly. |
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Willard
Phoenix
Joined: Mar 24, 2008
Posts: 617
Location: Confederate States of America
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 12:21 pm Post subject: |
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| mysterious_misfit wrote: | | I forgot to say that you could no more cure ASDs than cure colorblindness. You just can't change brain structure. |
Agreed. Same with dyslexia. It doesn't need curing, just don't make the dyslexic your bookkeeper. Problem solved. AS is a set of weaknesses, and a set of strengths - and can't that be said of everyone? So we're different, not broken. I don't need to be fixed, just accepted. And in all honesty, most of my professional life, my peer group accepted me just fine, in spite of my differences (but I did seek out careers in fields that attracted creative, non-mainstream personalities). I digress. We am what we is. Cure Schmure.
I know NTs who have a tendency to talk too much. Do they need a medical cure for blabbermouth?
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mysterious_misfit
Velociraptor
Joined: Apr 25, 2008
Age: 27
Posts: 439
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| Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:17 pm Post subject: |
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| Willard wrote: |
I know NTs who have a tendency to talk too much. Do they need a medical cure for blabbermouth? |
I always say that scientists need to find a cure for stupid. 
Last edited by mysterious_misfit on Sat Jul 05, 2008 8:04 am; edited 1 time in total |
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sinsboldly
Free Range Aspie
Joined: Nov 22, 2006
Age: 58
Posts: 8263
Location: Oregon, USA
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| Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 3:54 am Post subject: mysterious_misfit |
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| mysterious_misfit wrote: | | Willard wrote: |
I know NTs who have a tendency to talk too much. Do they need a medical cure for blabbermouth? |
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I was trying to post an answer to your post and I cut off what you posted.
Please post again, sorry!
Merle
_________________
The older you get, the more like yourself you become.
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Nutterbug
Snowy Owl
Joined: Jul 05, 2008
Posts: 171
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| Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 6:45 am Post subject: |
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| mysterious_misfit wrote: | I don't think it's possible to cure ASDs, because they are caused by the physical structure of the brain. For instance, depression can be cured, because it is a chemical imbalance and medication can re-normalize the chemical imbalance. Many types of psychological problems can be cured by 'talk therapy' so a person can express their feelings and feel better (that's what NTs like to do anyway). But ASDs are not a mental illness. The more I learn about ASDs, the less and less I am able to think of them as any kind of illness at all.
How can any of these be considered illness?
- a strong ability to concentrate.
- a strong internal drive to learn.
- a strong drive to control/create their environment and therefore become engineers, etc.
- excellent hearing, and other sharpened senses.
- love reading.
- normal to very high intelligence.
- attention to detail.
- strong honesty and integrity
I do recognize some impairments
- not able to easily socialize with strangers, but honestly, how important is that?
- lower functioning auties obviously have more severe problems, like self-care
- some level of lacking emotional vocabulary, but I suppose that early diagnosis and therapy in very young ASD tots can really help this.
- socially nieve, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing IMO. Only if you do get taken advantage of, but that is the other person's illness, a desire to take advantage of a vulnerable person. I have a strong aversion to playing 'blame the victim'.
- difficulty with intimate relationships, but there are a heck of a lot of NTs with that same problem, too!
- unusual body movements/postures and stimming, but most ASD adults learn to control these and only stim in private.
Really, what is there to 'cure'??? I'm also realizing that Aspies can learn to do pretty much anything NTs can do, we just have to learn it a different way. And I think that with early diagnosis and early intervention for very young children, there is every reason to believe that they will develop acceptable social skills that will stay with them. |
Neurotypicals are more at an optimal balance between those qualities listed than aspies are, hence why most people evolved that way, maybe? |
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Nutterbug
Snowy Owl
Joined: Jul 05, 2008
Posts: 171
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| Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 7:17 am Post subject: |
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| mysterious_misfit wrote: | | I forgot to say that you could no more cure ASDs than cure colorblindness. You just can't change brain structure. |
Couldn't they work on some kind of a right brain boost? Like they might want to develop a left brain boost for those who have a difficult physics exam the next day?
If they can develop antidepressants, why shouldn't they be able to alter your neurons in other ways as well? |
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