To understand that Autism is NOT a mental illness?

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Just that really, someone posted that autism is a mental illness.
I understand autism to be a different way of thinking/perceiving etc. Not an illness that one may or may not recover from

(My daughter is waiting for an assessment for autism & I would hate her to feel that she 'has a mental illness' & actually find that statement so disempowering. The world needs people to think differently, to challenge ideas that maybe set in stone & blur the idea that one size fits all.)

We had a rescue racing pigeon last year Battle, s/he might have done it for a few Digestive biscuits, but we had to put her/him on a train home in a cardboard box. Unhelpful, I know.

Turrets too!

Can we have battlements?

I can’t be doing with pigeons that demand train rides. Lazy sods.

I’ll bring the cake!

Actually, thinking about it, anyone who has read my thread about WB's new throwing shenanigans will realise we don't need pigeons.

Anyone offering to catapult me in a large G&T?!

As a mum to an amazing aspie, the only time that he has 'suffered' is because of NT expectations and bullshit. He went through a period of severe anxiety because of the pressure to keep up and be sociable. because that is what somebody else decided he should do. Timers, fun time and forced interaction so that others can give themselves a pat on the back whilst his starts to suffer the consequences of being wired differently. Squeezed into a box that he doesn't fit into.

Well fuck that, who gets to decide what is NT and what isn't?

He is different and as a high functioning autistic child it takes a while for others to see his differences but they do eventually. Some kids are drawn to him as he makes a good silent wingman others spot his awkwardness. If kids want to call him weird or bit dizzy or a loner that is their problem and not his. I try my best to boost his confidence in himself and celebrate his lovely self.

I can see that if I don't do this and let others pick away at him he has the potential to internalise it all and develop 'secondary' mental health issues. Right now he is a happy and healthy boy . He may not talk much, he may flap around and have strict routines and forget everything that he couldn't care less about (everything other than Lego, doodling and Nintendo switch), but like others have said he is the future of a growing tech world, he does not need curing or fixing.

mombie your boy sounds awesome!

zzzzz I believe that research is indicating that both those might be genetic/epigenetic rather than acquired, quite possibly similar aetiology to autism...

Like autism I think there is still very much that is unknown .

It is thought that people are born with a predisposition to such conditions which are then triggered at some point.
Medication and therapy can help manage the condition but there is no 'cure'.

Oh and just to be clear I'm not saying there is a predisposition to autism. Just trying to answer the question about bipolar and schizophrenia.

I think you're wrong to see mental illness as disempowering and that the term is used as a catch-all. Autism and mental illnesses could all be classed as disabilities and most people are bright enough to know the world disability isn't a one size fits all matter. Sorry, but your post comes across as demeaning those who have mental health issues.

I have a deficit of a pint of beetroot cider.

Interesting HardAsSnails

I am still interested in why people are so vehement in their rejection of autism sitting under the umbrella of "mental" health. and for the record I KNOW IT IS NEUROLOGICAL IN ORIGIN. The two things are not mutually exclusive

A pp posted some interesting excerpts from an article questioning the drive to distance particular conditions from the mental health sphere. Really made me think about how negative the associations with the term 'mental' are.

If autism was a mental health condition I wouldn’t have a problem with it being called one. But it’s not, it’s neurological.

The two are not always mutually exclusive but they also don’t always go together.

It’s about accuracy and terminology.

I have mental health problems, I am autistic. Two separate things.

Thank you for replying SoddingUnicorns I really appreciate that.

Does autism impact / affect the way a person thinks ?

This is probably going to sound ridiculous but I don’t know, because I don’t know how a non autistic person thinks if that makes any sense.

It’s only when I tell people my thought processes and they look at me like I have 3 heads that I wonder.

So honestly, I haven’t a clue. Sorry that’s a crap answer.

It's much, much nicer zzzzz! It's like liquid, alcoholic beetroot.

I don’t drink (can’t handle feeling tipsy) but beetroot cider sounds lovely!