To think ADHD/ASD labels get used too casually sometimes?

Oh yay another thread where we debate diagnosis.

It seems to be increasingly popular at the minute to try and make ND some sort of “super power” it is infuriating.

my DD is autistic, hasn’t left the house properly in months, hasn’t attended school in over a year, has accessed no education.

it is NOT a superpower. Though having said that just because she is verbal and not profound doesn’t make her needs any less in the sense of how they affect her.

Oh yay another thread where we debate diagnosis.

It seems to be increasingly popular at the minute to try and make ND some sort of “super power” it is infuriating.

my DD is autistic, hasn’t left the house properly in months, hasn’t attended school in over a year, has accessed no education.

it is NOT a superpower. Though having said that just because she is verbal and not profound doesn’t make her needs any less in the sense of how they affect her.

They do say once you've met one autistic person, you've met one autistic person it might be worth pondering that thought as some here expect others autism to match or mimic their own / their loved ones.

Autism is bespoke to each autistic person, yes there are commonalities amongst them, but they aren't all the same, autism isn't graded as Learning Disabilities are, each autistic person regardless of intellect is "autistic" which is nice to know about them, but tells you absolutely nothing about the person in front of you, getting to know them, as an individual, let's you better understand them and what their autism means for them.

I agree. It's similar to the word 'phobia'. I had a genuine phobia up to a few years ago (I'm much better now thankfully) and it was absolutely crippling in regard to my everyday life. It irritated me that a mild dislike of something was labelled a 'phobia' because it meant people really didn't understand the extent of what I was going through.

Now people use the terms ADHD and OCD in similar ways. A faint preference for doing something a certain way gets labelled as OCD, or a bit of disorganisation for example, gets labelled ADHD. However, I do think the excessive use has diluted the terms, in that lots of people use the labels freely (I hate the term 'label' btw) which makes the terms very commonplace and therefore not as stigmatised. But I do understand that sufferers might not agree as they may feel it devalues their experience

Right back at you. None of my kids will a normal life whatever that is. They don’t have severe learning difficulties which incidentally are separate to autism.

I have some ADHD traits, but I don't have ADHD. I'm easily distracted, I sometimes struggle to focus, I'm always losing things, I fidget, I'm forgetful etc But none of these traits overwhelm me or stop me from functioning well, like it does with people who actually have ADHD. I have a sister who does have ADHD.

I have noticed online recently that there's a weird assumption that NT people are all the same, cope fine with life and don't have daily challenges and issues. It's complete nonsense. NT people can also struggle with anxiety and concentration and socialising and all of those things too.

Not every difficulty needs a label, and not every personality trait is a diagnosis. NT people can and do struggle too, just in different ways. Pretending otherwise oversimplifies human experience and ultimately helps no one.

I agree that the length of waiting lists are causing people to self diagnose themselves and their children. I knew my dc were autistic way before they were diagnosed officially and the school did too. I still get annoyed when people talk about being "a bit autistic" or " neurospicy" and i probably have no right to do that.

I have 3 dc who have the kind of autism that used to be called Aspergers syndrome. And one who is diagnosed with the least severe kind of autism (I think they call it level 1) but also has severe emotional development delay as well, so he is 11 but has the emotional development of a 3 year old. But he is cognitively about right for his age. The older 3 mainly find their autism a major nuisance, and youngest doesn't really understand what autism is.

I live a normal life now but i have had to work hard to get here.
Im just aware that some people will never get to that stage. For instance, my friends autistic brother has severe learning disabilities as an result and could never work because he doesn’t have the capability to.

Please don’t judge before you know a persons full situation. I have worked bloody hard to get to where I am in life and I was diagnosed when society barely acknowledged autism was even a thing, so there was ZERO help.

I think a lot of the symptoms of ADHD overlap with the symptoms of phone addiction, which is why so many people have started wondering if they have ADHD. Especially when the social media they’re addicted to so often shows them lists of symptoms they can attribute to themselves. I started down the road of thinking like that, then I gave up instagram and pulled myself together and guess what I became organised again. That is absolutely NOT to say there aren’t people with genuine ADHD, of course there are, but when everyone you talk to says they’re wondering if they have ADHD because they fit the symptoms on Instagram you have to wonder.

If you google online you will find forums of psychiatrists talking very candidly about their thoughts on ADHD and the people presenting to their offices seeking a diagnosis. It's actually very interesting reading with many interesting theories of what is going on and why so many people are seeking prescription stimulants in order to function and cope in todays world.

FYI, I have a diagnosis of ADHD myself and have been on and off various medications and I am now more sceptical about it than I once was. Also l literally don't know anyone who hasn't said to me at some point that they suspect they have ADHD, even people who objectively totally have their shit together.

I think you are projecting. You haven’t been there throughout said person’s life and you’re not in his head. Autism varies- a lot!

If you live a “normal life” whatever that is and aren’t significantly impacted by autism than I’d love to know how you got a diagnosis.

You don’t speak for everybody. Many people hide their autism as best they can and struggle day in and day out whilst jumping though the hoops of normalcy.

And define “profound”, two of my dc are supported by a significant amount of services. They don’t have a learning disability in addition but they are blighted with both autism and adhd which absolutely could be described as profound given the impact on life and the amount of support they get from services. All access mainstream education. Being non verbal doesn’t give you extra autism. It can vary throughout life and there are many non verbal children accessing mainstream schools.

Of course they are. But when you point out ND /NT are not binary, clearly different categories or that increased numbers of self diagnosed- and identifying as- ND people cannot possibly all access the accomodations they would like to be able to, you're ablist.

I think you may be projecting here, I don't know you, I'm talking about someone I have known very well for many years. He has no social communication issues, has had a busy, normal, successful life, all milestone met etc. My daughter is autistic, that means something, it had a profound affect on her life. We need a word to express her difficulties. Perhaps more differentiation in the diagnosis is the way things will go.

I agree my son is profoundly autistic, but I would be quite happy ro lose the autism diagnosis all together and call his condition something else.aa long as there is a distinction
It doesn't help anyone that both you and my sons have the same diagnosis imo.

Dear god. The man may be a bullshitter - or not. You have no idea what it costs him to mask and present like that. What goes on in behind closed doors. I have a late diagnosis of adhd, a successful business behind me, two lovely adult children and a bunch of friends. The actual shitshow that has been my life is not overly visible on the surface. You would doubtless consider me “normal”. You’d be so, so fucking wrong.

Neurospicy makes me so angry.

I also think that my level of autism (Asperger’s) shouldn’t really be referred to as Autism. There are some profoundly disabled people with autism- non verbal etc. I feel it’s wrong that me and people like me who are high functioning, are referred to as autistic as I feel it downplays it for people who are profoundly disabled with it.
I have managed to live a normal life, many very autistic people will never be able to.

I think autistic should be a term protected for profoundly autistic people. I actually liked the Asperger’s term, but I believe that’s gone now (I was diagnosed many years ago).

You have no idea what is going on in people’s lives. I have an NHS autism diagnosis. I hide my sensory difficulties, communication and life difficulties. I don’t jog into work and bore everybody with any of it. I actually want to keep my job. I’m already under employed as are most people with autism.

It renders the diagnosis meaningless, if people with no social communication, sensory issues or any other notable life difficulties are claiming to be autistic.

Wow you’ve been there every step of the way throughout his life!

Loving these amateur not autistic diagnosticians who have no expertise and aren’t in the heads or with people throughout their lives.

Someone I know well who is middle aged, has a busy full time job with lots of responsibilities and lots of interaction with other people, a busy social life, has always had lots of friends, never had any notable problems in life or in school is now claiming to be autistic. Honestly, if he's autistic, we all are!

This doesn't irk me as much as people with low needs/ high functioning autism making it seem quirky and cute. ASD is neither.

Do you actually know anything about the ADHD process?

For a start you need to prove you’ve struggling from childhood. It isn’t just based on sitting in offices. People from all walks of life have ADHD. I am late diagnosed and I’m rarely on screens throughout the working day. It was clear as day I had it as a child but as experienced by many women and girls I was let down by ignorance and a male skewed diagnosis process .

Surely they aren't all being diagnosed on traits that have shown up in their lives only in the last 5 years?

@sharkstale interested to hear more about this. I’m on a waiting list for assessment but also had a troubled childhood and wonder if it could just be that. How do they tell the difference?