To think autism gets worse with each generation

It's not true in my experience. I am autistic as is my DD. My DD got a lot more support and understanding than I ever did. As a result she completed her degree and has a steady professional job, with support in place to help her keeping. I dropped out of university several times and worked a string of minimum wage jobs that always ended in disaster. I haven't worked for 20 years as a result.

@x2boys I haven't, I spoke to someone on the helpline after my wee lad needed stitches on his forehead after a massive incident, basically the lollipop lady who he'd never even looked or acknowledged as far as i knew, was a different one one day and he ran into the road and headbutted the floor, he managed to twist himself out of the pram straps and almost caused a accident. I explained this and the school even let me send their write up on it. Anyway I was just so upset because the woman I spoke to said "but lwren he CAN walk". I think that just took the last bit of fight out of me if I'm honest. I also felt as though I was describing a monster, not my baby on the forms. My son can attack me in excess of 50 times a day if something really devastates him but he can also sit on me and ask for 50 kisses, it's less likely than giving me a crack in the chops, but i found it soul destroying constantly explaining my small lad was so violent.
Maybe when I'm not so burnt out from the constant fighting for him I will try again.

Something lovely to add, my son gets a taxi and escort to and from school each day and he adores the taxi driver, during the holidays if I need to go somewhere the taxi driver gave me his number and will come pick us up so it's much less stressful than a unknown car etc. Some people just get it and those ones are golden.

It's complex isn't it. I think whoever said this term ' autism ' just isn't enough to differentiate individuals is right. People are lumped into one homogeneous group atm as our discussions demonstrate.

Your example with your loved ones is so different to say someone like Anthony Hopkins. Yet, we have one diagnostic term, and 3 categories of differentiation there. It's not enough.

I'd love to see much more researched and understanding in my lifetime for all of us.

Because neurodivergent people are attracted to like minded people, it’s very particular we can suss it out in other people. It’s like looking for your own species 😂

Why does the NHS disagree with you on this?

I'm not being critical btw. I'm trying to engage in debate about it rather than trying to attack you and your posts. It's a very interesting subject for us all to have a healthy debate about.

I accept that I myself do and will often say things that are really offernsive and patronising to ND people and I'm ok to hear that - it helps expand my understanding.

No offence intended 🙏

just as a sidenote, does anybody have the contact details of a specialist in autism to help with an application for PIP please?

🙏

But it.quite,literally is,in my sons,case they have done a micro array blood tests and found a chromosome deletion
Yes he has co morbid disabilities but I don't know how you separate the two where does one start and the other end
I

Or is it all just profound autism
I know some people don't likes to be associated people like my son here we are .

I hate it when people like you try to make out that autism isn’t a disability. Autism is a disability causing a number of deficits in social functioning and understanding! I class what autism is defined as as a malfunction of the wiring of the brain for that reason. I am autistic and it had adversely effected my life

They think that autism (and ADHD) are caused by multiple genes, many of which we haven't yet identified. Essentially the theory goes that the more of the genes you have, the more "severe" the autism, and some of them may also sort of be "activated" by environmental factors e.g. lead exposure, birth hypoxia. It's possible to have some genes associated with autism, but not be autistic. It's similar to how someone can have a genetic risk for e.g. heart disease and might need to be more careful about their diet compared with someone else without that risk.

It's more complicated than that, and not as clear cut as diet and heart disease, but as a very simple starting point. It would make sense that a parent may pass on some genes relating to autism and the other parent may pass on some genes and these can combine to result in a different presentation.

But I think you need to look at other factors which are likely to lead to this observed pattern too.

The more impairing a person's autism is, the earlier in life it tends to be recognised. Autistic parents may have DC with milder presentations which aren't picked up until later in life (or at all), but you notice the DC with more impairment.

I remember autistic children (the sibling of a friend; the child of an adult family friend) who were intellectually disabled, so more impairing presentations of autism also existed in previous generations. Those children, now adults, are unlikely to have children of their own, so the order of a more-impaired parent having a less-impaired child is less likely to happen than the other way around. Autistic adults who have children but struggle to look after their children due to their difficulties may also have the children removed or placed with another family member, so again you would not necessarily see this. If you are aware of a child who has been adopted or is in foster care, you would not necessarily know their background.

I understand that autism rates are increasing, and some of this is due to increased parental age (which affects chromosomes) and some is due to higher survival rates in newborns who are born small, early, or don't get enough oxygen at birth. It's possible this is doing more of the "activation" of the genes which have been present through the generations.

For those who need it spelling out, the source of the data showing a massive increase in autism (in the US but actually it's global) is the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Network of the US Centers for Disease Control. Not Dr John Campbell himself, not RFK Jr. So that it's clear where you can see the data presented, here is the link again--sorry for the repeat. These figures clearly indicate an environmental, not genetic, cause.

But regardless of how you like to think of it Autism is caused by the cells in the brain mutating, end of, if you don’t want to think of it in that way then don’t talk about genetics…… because genetics is based on cells and their mutations……

This is offensive nonsense.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition. People's brains work differently. This is a different way of being human. It is not a mutation. Biological hard markers of autism, including genetic markers, remain elusive despite decades of research.

The NHS states, 'no one knows what causes autism or even if there is a cause'.

The NHS also states that vaccines do not cause autism.

Ah yes that makes sense. I need to go look at the Temple Grandin book again and the structural differences she references in her studies.

This is me! Slapped into submission at home. Always had to mask at home. That was the 80’s. Constantly told I was a miserable cow, lazy, useless. I created an acceptable version of myself in my late teens and 20’s that would rub along smoothly with them. Lots of fake smiles and laughs, so much physical annd mental effort to display a certain personality and arrange my face into a suitable presentation.

@Verbena17 presumably you are talking of the outdated and disproved research of years ago.

In the most recent research biomarkers have been identified in utero where the brain and skull develop differently in children who later turn out to be autistic, rugby ball shaped - longways in 2nd trimester and returning to normal shape by the 3rd, DDs brain and head also followed this pattern and I had extra scans to monitor it not for autism though. That is nothing to do with vaccines, my DBro, DDad, multiple Aunts and Uncles, DGrandparents born in the 1930s all also displayed traits of autism, DGDads sibling was also institutionalised neither my DDad or DGP had the MMR.

I'm really open minded about all this. But Autism is not a disease. I don't want to patronise anyone with really significant struggles and kids with significant struggles here. This theory however suggests that Autism is a defect, mutation, something gone wrong. I don't believe this is the case where I see individuals with ' superior' thinking ( got no idea what word is apt here to describe this; thinking is probably not the correct word).

I'm thinking of the lyrical geniuses ( Eminen cites his Asperger's in his music,) I absolutely believe that he's ND based on all I've read, you have Silicon Valley geniuses, you have talented actors like Anthony Hopkins. I think we just don't understand this enough to know but I don't believe it's defective. It's very complex and there are issues regards co morbids which may be seen as defective I guess. Certainly not a disease.

Also I wrote my above reply whilst said nd child was sat on my head trying to chew my hair and humming the tune from a 80s commercial he watches on YouTube 100s of times a day, so I forgot to reply to you @eastereggg but I'm looking into my family tree a bit more.
My parents have LD and I presume my dad had ADHD and I suspect my mum has autism.
But from what I've seen from my family history we're all predisposed to MH (lots of psychosis) problems, lots of my family are undiagnosed ND because they're so awful as people. It's not just years of generational poverty and trauma, its addiction, violence etc and abuse. But as we understand ND more and more I'm realising "scummy uncle mick" whilst still an absolute prick, he also struggles with a world not designed for a man with LD and likely ASD. That's definitely adding to him being a prick.

Have you been to.tribunal ?
I did a change of circumstances when my son was nine and took.It to tribunal.where he,was,awarded..HR M under SMI.

I’m speaking in a scientific sense, in an autistic brain the cells have mutated to work differently than in a brain without. I don’t mean any offence by it.

I guess you hear about certain cases more. Ive got Asperger's which is now known as autism as a child I was extremely lonely and known as the "weirdo". My child isn't autistic and is extremely popular and confident, basically the polar opposite of me as a child.

No it is known to have multiple factors not just genetic and a main reason of cells mutating in an abnormal way is also environmental factors, as has been proven with Cancer, Dementia, Alzheimers, the cells always start abnormally mutating as they do in the brain with Autism.

I have a friend who has held down a steady job and successful relationships. He was diagnosed in adulthood. Both his DC went to special schools. One will never live independently. He has really struggled with it.

As a ND mum of a severely nd child who attends sen school with a magnitude of issues and genuine social problems which include inability to access public transport unless he's got 2 adults with him and he needs a handling belt etc we aren't entitled to mobility help and my kiddo has done some shocking damage to himself and me when out in the community.
He has a mobility buggy and will need a wheelchair when he's too large for the big buggy.
I see it (not just on mumsnet in fairness) that people with children who are on pathways as teens or aren't anywhere near the level of unable to cope as my ds is with transport and walking that all these people have mobility cars. It has to be bollocks. Why would the dwp hand out mobility cars to the parents of autistic kids who can (not without struggle but still are able to get a bus without trying to put the window through with their head) when children who cannot use transport don't get cars? You do have to prove that your child needs a car. You can't just say they do. I was able send huge amounts of evidence from professionals and school regarding my ds incidents and injuries and the specialist equipment we need for him and they're still adamant my son isn't entitled. I was able to show them a report from school that resulted in a ambulance being called for my ds after being upset by a very small change. I just think there must be more afoot than what people getting cars are telling you, maybe they're playing down their children's behaviour?

Whilst I'm an open book anonymously with friends I dont share my sons behaviours because they're his business. It's not his job to educate people on autism through me telling people who know us how fucking devastating some days can be