Autism is not a superpower

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This is true, but Temple Grandin also had a very supportive mother who actively defended her against others to give her the opportunity to better explore her potential.

I myself had more of a neutral experience of my autistic traits growing up in that I was definitely not supported in being different, however no one tried to change me either as long as I didn't bother them, so I learned I could do a lot in isolation but that isolation in itself carries some limitations.

Which I don't think was a bad outcome. I am happy as myself, but I would be even happier on a "team" where the contribution of my abilities could go farther, so that remains a goal and a desire but not to such a level that I feel defeated for not achieving it.

But I do feel concern for those who grow up or get trapped in negative environments, whose paths to independence or even just basic self-acceptance is undermined by destructive caretakers who have the power to interfere with one's ability to pursue self-advancement and lessened dependency. People in this position may be in need of more outside help if they want to make things better as their own bootstraps might not be enough.

And I also get annoyed with normal people who gush over my "giftings" in a shallow manner rather than with genuine respect, often in a context of either trying to benefit from them for free without offering fair compensation of either material or social exchange, or trying to gloss over my struggles as not really being that bad or worth consideration.

Last edited by Brisienna on 26 Dec 2019, 12:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.

^^

Kids get a lot more support in the school system than they used to which is good news.

It’s an unfortunate fact of life that not all kids have a nurturing and supportive home life.

At least we have laws and social systems like Children and Youth in place to help kids get away from abusive situations.

Not all of us can be Temple Grandin, but I think we all have something to offer even if it might not be obvious to people outside of our immediate circle.

I agree.

You have to use what you’ve got, even if it’s not a superpower.

I agree that many autistic people have very un-nurturing environments.

Mine really wasn’t supportive of difference. I had the same expectations as NT kids.

I am lucky in that I was determined to succeed. Even though I had some naysayers.

The thing with a unique ability an autistic person might have, it is unique. As only that person or very few have that ability. If it was an autism superpower thing then most of us would have that ability, rather than it being 000.1%.

Exactly.

Yeah, I agree.

I will agree that being autistic is not by itself a superpower. However, it allows an individual some opportunities that typically are not taken by NT individuals. You could say we take the road less traveled in life. Social norms tend to confine NT thought processes in a rather restrictive way. They have to follow all of the NT rules or be kicked out by their social network.

Not having those same restrictions in place (ie. being ND) can lead to discoveries in abilities that would not normally be explored (for example: extreme creativity in thinking). It is those abilities that tend to be mislabeled as a superpower, when they were always there buried underneath other things. Many people have these same abilities but rarely use them. All autism does is allow an easier access to find said abilities if they do exist.

You can look at your particular set of skills as being part of a large inner tool box. Some may obsess over one tool over another, so they may get very good at one thing, but at a loss of something else in the box. Very few people become experts at all of the tools in their box, there is almost always something that has been left out in the process to get to that point. Even savants are not always perfect in all of their skills that they have in their box.

NTs can have those abilities too.

True, but it is far rarer for NTs to find the abilities and act upon them than NDs. My perspective is that NTs tend to be distracted with their social life too much and miss out on the subtle things that coexist in life.

It's not a superpower, it's a power, a different way of being. Similarly, cats hear very well, dogs sniff very well, and birds fly.

For me, I don't have any hollywood movie talents, I'm no einstein nor the good doctor.
But I do immerse with my senses & surroundings in an intensity that NT's can't relate to. One example is I can be entertained by a patch of grass for quite a while.
I have incredible memory in very random things, I once beat Super Mario World with my eyes closed because I memorised the entire game and could tell where I was based on the music & sound effects. I can play the most intense level of tetris for endless hours without even paying attention too it, it's a natural flow for me. I haven't met NT's that can relate to this. But on the flipside, NT's social abilities feel like a superpower to me, and their ability to have all-around interests instead of specifically dedicated interests.. But those aren't superpowers, they're just different set of ability.

I wouldn't call it a superpower, I would call it having some benefits aside the disadvantages. I have used my Focus, tenacity and disregard for social conformity to do some unusual things (that probably don't matter) and some unusual things (that probably do matter). Some see these unusual things as "amazing" (something they would never think or do). I am "mild to moderate" ASD and was fortunate to have opportunities available to do these things. If I hadn't wrapped myself up in NT life (job, family) and lost myself (shame), I would totally Focus and do more... well, at least I tell myself that. I sort of believe it. When I Focus on something there is a fairly high probability I will go "beyond" (NT expectations). In fact, since I have the children, I try to keep them in Focus - so hard. Really I want to "play". Such a drag to care for oneself and family. Pros and Cons. Which reminds me that the disadvantage of Focus is focusing on the "wrong" thing.

This is my way of thinking on it as well.

I think we have traits which could have been very valuable specializations in previous iterations of human culture (my guess is forest tribal living and warfare, where the more common strength and sight-based proficiencies wouldn't have done so much good) which have now become obsolete, leading to a dispersion among the general population that we weren't biologically equipped for. ie: a genotype that succeeded enough at natural selection to not completely die out when the environment it was specialized for changed, but not enough to reliably reproduce and support its own kind without intermixing. Like maybe we're all half-elves now, but by the luck of the draw some of us end up with better halves than others, in addition to differing levels of community tolerance and support.

I know for myself I feel a lot more competent when I can find ways to channel my "inner elf" so to speak, but in a complex civilization, competency doesn't necessarily translate into effectiveness, since it's not really what you can do that gets your survival needs met, but what you can get other people to pay you for, leading to a lot of frustration in having to make choices between where I can excel and feel personal fulfillment versus what needs to be done just to maintain basic food and shelter.

This so much. I wasted my teen years trying to assimilate with NT culture. Even upon achieving blending in with them, it just brought me misery as I wasn't feeling true to myself. When I was 20 I decided to discard the institutionalized life-style, and forge a unique path of my own.
The funny thing is, even for NT's, adulthood is unique for everyone, because there's optionally no more institutional living. You're free to independently live the way you want, without judgement (as long as it's not unlawful). I decided to pursue my interests, and filter who gets to be in my life.
Nowadays my IRL friends are fellow gamers, cartoon/anime fans, witches, cosplayers. And I can honestly say, my unconventional life is much happier than that of just doing what's popular.


Agreed! Capitalism kills.

That's just an assumption. You can't speak for all NTs.

I have Aspergers Syndrome and I do not know if I am saying the right or wrong thing. I am just speaking my mind and being honest. I do not intend to hurt anyone's feelings. This condition is not a superpower/good it is a curse/bad. Having Aspergers makes life frustrating and difficult with social interactions and not being understood.