PDD vs "the spectrum"

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PDD, (not to be confused with pdd-nos) means "Pervasive Developmental Disorder". Unlike the word "autism", PDD is self defined, and there is no controversy that I fit that description.
1.My condition is very pervasive, meaning that it affects many aspects of brain functioning.
2.My condition is by definition developmental, since this is the way I was born, and it is the real me, not just some overlay on top of the NT brain.
3. Relative to the reality surrounding me, it is by definition a disorder, although in the proper "world" it may not be. This makes the name of this forum (wrong planet) very appropriate for me.
Thus I am definitely PDD. No problem there.

The "Autistic Spectrum" (ASD), on the other hand, is not self defined; it can be whatever psychiatry wants to define it as. But ASD is much more specific than PDD, it is only one way to be PDD, yet it is the only category in PDD (other than specific pathological overlays, such as Rett).

Thus people like me, who are severely PDD, but not in the autistic way, must be able to be classified as PDD without having to pass the autism test.

PDD is part of the Autism Spectrum. In the new DSM, PDD and Asperger's don't actually exist. It is all under ASD. Down's Syndrome is a pervasive disorder, a developmental disorder, and a disorder, but it is not PDD. Just because something is pervasive, developmental, and a disorder does not make it PDD as a diagnostic label. Maybe you should talk to a doctor or psychologist about your concerns and see what they think?

I don't know about the "pervasive" part, but me with classic autism have been called developmentally disabled and went to school for developmentally disabled kids. I would just say ASD. The only label that's going to matter is the official one they stick on you. And they are not always cut and dry. Mine is kinda extensive overall and has changed here and there over the years since i was first dx at 2.